TOURISM BUSINESSES SEEK UP TO B20 BILLION IN

THEPHUKETNEWS.COM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020

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Charges sought for virus death fake news post

Phuket Power to challenge AFL Masters

Students use tech to lend a helping hand

TOURISM BUSINESSES

SEEK UP TO B20 BILLION IN

ASSISTANCE OVER VIRUS

FALLOUT

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Tanyaluk [email protected]

Phuket Governor Phakaphong Tavipatana on Monday (Feb 3) was handed a formal request

for the government to provide up to B20 billion in assistance to tourism businesses suffering as the number of international tourist arrivals con-tinues to plunge in the fallout from the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak in China.

The same request had already been sent to Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and the Ministry Finance, explained Kongsak Khongphongsa-korn, President of the Thailand Hotels Association Southern chapter, who was at the meeting at Provincial Hall on Monday.

Phuket Tourist Association Presi-dent Bhummikitti Ruktaengam ex-plained that the request for B20bn was for a worst-case scenario of the number of Chinese tourists falling by 90%.

As of Tuesday (Feb 4), the total number of international tourist arriv-als at Phuket International Airport had fallen by more than 44%, ac-cording to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Intelligence Centre. (See page 9.)

“We have modelled our request on three scenarios,” Mr Bhummikitti told The Phuket News.

“The first scenario is that the number of Chinese tourists falls by 50%, which would result in losses of tourism revenues of about at B7.425bn and a total economic loss of about

B9.281bn,” he explained.“The second scenario is that the

number of Chinese tourists falling by 70%, which would result in tourism income losses of about B10.395nm, and a total economic loss of about B14.033bn,” he added.

“The third scenario is that the number of Chinese tourists falls by 90%, which would result in tourism income loss of an estimated B13.365bn and a total economic loss of about B20.047bn,” Mr Bhummikitti said.

“If the coronavirus situation re-mains uncontrollable, we may suffer greatly as a consequence, but either way an increased economic impact is inevitable,” he added.

The request for assistance has been formally filed by the Phuket Tourism Business Association, in cooperation

with the Phuket Tourism Industry Council, the Thai Hotel Association Southern chapter and the Phang Nga Province Tourism Association, Mr Bhummikitti explained.

“We sent the urgent request to Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and the Ministry of Finance on Janu-ary 28,” he confirmed.

The operators are not expecting a government giveaway, Mr Bhum-mikitti added.

“We require and ask for B20bn be provided as soft loans to support tourism operators, businesses and staffers working in Phuket. We have asked that the government provides loans to support tourism businesses with 2% interest, which is same rate of interest as the soft loans provided after the 2004 tsunami,” he explained.

HOW MUCH?

Phuket Governor Phakaphong Tavipatana received the request for B20 billion in assistance on Monday (Feb 3). Photo: PR Dept

CHERNG TALAY STARTS RUNNING OUT OF WATER > PAGE 3


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Soi Dog urges against stray dog roundup in Krabi > p5

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Tourism reels amid virus falloutContinued from page 1…Mr Kongsak pointed out that 15 of the 100 THA member hotels in Phuket had suffered 100% cancella-tions of Chinese group tour bookings, and the number of Chinese “free independent travellers’ (FITs) was also falling dramatically.

“In February and March we expect 100 % cancellations of all Chinese tour group bookings, and bookings by Chinese FITs to fall by up to 80%,” Mr Kongsak said.

“After that we expect Chinese FITs to start returning slowly in lower numbers in April, but not recovering to the same numbers as last year.

“Chinese groups might come back in October, but by then it will already be the tourism low season,” he added.

Mr Kongsak also voiced concerns that tourists from countries other than China are also deciding to not come to Phuket for fear of the virus spreading.

“We are worried about travelers from other countries, they are scared of this virus, which delays their decision to travel,” he explained.

“The government has tried to cheer up and encourage the Chinese people. This does not help us,” he said.

“I require the government to send the right message to other countries that are our tourism source markets, such as Europe, India and Russia, for those people to have confidence in travelling to Phuket,” Mr Kongsak explained.

BLANKET ASSURANCES

Governor Phakaphong at the meeting on Monday assured that the govern-ment was already supporting local businesses by implementing control measures to curtail the spread of the virus and apparently by still promoting tourism to Phuket.

Present at the meeting to hear the assurances were Phuket Vice Governor Suphoj Rotrueang Na Nongkhai along with the heads of government agencies and representa-tives from the Phuket Chamber of

THE KRABI PROVIN- cial Public Health Office (KPHO) has denied reports that 100 people in Krabi are being held in isolation on suspicion of being infected with the Wuhan coronavirus.

The reports are wrong, they say. Only five people are under observation, the Krabi Health Office said.

The news came at a press conference at Krabi Pro-vincial Hall last Saturday (Feb 1), headed by Krabi Vice Governor Somkhuan Khan-Ngern together with Krabi Hospital Director Dr Supoj Phukaoluan and KPHO representative Dr Wasin Thiankingkaew.

Vice Governor Som-khuan said that the infor-mation that more than 100 people suspected of being infected with the coronavirus were receiving care at sev-eral hospitals in Krabi was a misunderstanding.

A previous press confer-ence by the health office had explained that 100 rooms were being prepared in case the province had that many

people placed in observation.Dr Supoj confirmed that

officers have not found any people infected with the coronavirus in the province.

“We have only five people who are under observation at different hospitals,” he said.

The five people had body temperatures of more than 37.5ºC, a runny nose and diarrhea.

“These people do not have serious symptoms [of the disease], and we keep them in special rooms,” he said.

Vice Governor Somkhuan

Health officials denied reports that 100 people suspected of being infected with the Wuhan coronavirus were under observation in Krabi. There are only five, they said. Photo: PR Dept / Krabi

Tourists arriving on a direct flight from Shenzhen are screened on arrival at Phuket International Airport. Photo: AoT Phuket

Commerce, Phuket Tourism Industry Council, Phuket Tourism Business Association, Thai Hotels Association Southern chapter, Phuket Profes-sional Tourist Association, Phuket Old Town Tourism Community, hotel business operators, tour boat operators and airlines.

“Phuket has implemented strict measures to prevent pneumonia from the new virus on Jan 5 with disease surveillance measures, disease prevention and control measures, tourism measures and measures on public transport and to reduce the impact of the virus, which includes both fiscal and financial remedies [see page 7],” the Governor said.

“Phuket has discussed with the private sector to revitalise the tour-ism industry of Phuket now and in the future in order to reduce the economic impact that will occur due to the decrease in the number of tourists at this time by helping to find measures to promote tourism in the country as well as building confidence in tourists in the disease control measures in Thailand and Phuket,” he added.

Reports of ‘100 suspected patients’ in Krabi debunked

confirmed that there are in-tensive screening procedures in place at Krabi Interna-tional Airport and tourist attractions.

“These are done under the guidance of hospital staff and professional doctors,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Krabi Hotel Association and the Krabi Tourism Association both reported that tourists are still travelling to Kra-bi as usual, and that there have not been any urgent mass checking-out from any hotels. The Phuket News

HIDDEN NUMBERSNot mentioned at the Bangkok-

ordered “virus situation daily up-date” meeting on Monday was any update on the number of people still being held in isolation in Phuket on suspicion of being infected with the virus. At last report, on Jan 30, Vachira Phuket Hospital Director Dr Chalermpong Sukontapol con-firmed that three more tourists in Phuket were suspected of carrying the virus and were in isolation and under observation at the hospital.

However, Dr Chalermong did not explain where the tourists were identified as suspected of being in-fected with the virus, which country they originated from, how long they had been in Phuket, or even their ages or genders. He did say that the new cases brought to 23 the total number of people held in isolation in Phuket on suspicion that they may be infected since officials started screening tourists on Jan 5.

So far no people in Phuket have been confirmed as infected with the coronavirus, Dr Chalermpong stressed.


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3PHUKET NEWS


Charges sought over fake newsAoT asks police to press charges over virus death false report

Airports of Thailand m a n a g e m e n t a t Phuket International

Airport (AoT Phuket) has filed a formal complaint with police to press charges under the Computer Crimes Act for a post online that claimed a foreigner infected with the Wuhan coronavirus had died at the airport.

Phuket Vice Governor Supoj Rotreuang Na Nong-khai confirmed the news to the press last Friday (Jan 31).

The complaint filed by AoT Phuket requests that police press charges under Section 14 of the Computer Crimes Act, Vice Governor Supoj said.

“The person posted wrong information and photos about the Wuhan flu, which affected Phuket’s tourism image,” he said.

Among the Wuhan f lu reports in Phuket going viral this week was a post claiming that a foreign woman at the airport had died of the Wuhan coronavirus.

The post, uploaded onto Facebook by “Konnika Jam-paburee” on Monday (Jan 27), showed a photo of a person covered with a white sheet be-ing wheeled out of the airport and loaded into an ambulance.

Along with the photo were

the words in Thai, “One death at Phuket International Airport #Chinese”.

Dr Sutsinee Sakswut, the airport doctor on duty that Monday, confirmed to The Phuket News last Wednesday (Feb 29) that nobody had died

from the “Wuhan flu” at the airport. “The post is wrong,” she said.

Vice Governor Supoj pointed out that under Sec-tion 14 (1) of the Computer Crimes Act it is illegal to for any person to commit an act

Vice Governor Supoj warned that posting or sharing fake news about the Wuhan coronavirus in Phuket may be charged under the Computer Crimes Act. Image: PR Dept

CHER NG TALAY MU-nicipality this week finally admitted that water supply to a slew of residential projects and businesses in municipal-ity’s area of administration has been shut off entirely.

Cherng Talay Municipal-ity’s Water Production Division Supervisor Tripoom Musik-karat confirmed to The Phuket News on Wednesday (Feb 5) that mains water supply had been shut off to 11 locations, most of them on Soi Cherng Talay 14 and 16.

Among the residential projects directly affected are The Residence Resort and Spa Retreat, phases two and three of The Residence hous-ing estate as well as Sai Taan Villa, Oceanstone by Resava, Diamond Condominium, Man-dala Condominium and the Baan Mandala housing estate.

Other places include Green Elephant Sanctuary Park, Blue Tree Phuket and places under the management of STC Ser-vice Co Ltd and Samcom Co Ltd, Mr Tripoom confirmed.

“Cherng Talay Municipal-ity informed the operators [sic] on Jan 10 by phone and sent a formal letter to each operator again at the end of January. The water supply to these locations was shut

off at 1pm last Saturday (Feb 1),” Mr Tripoom admitted on Wednesday.

“We have to shut off the water supply to them because they used a lot of water. We take water distribution to houses of local people as prior-ity,” Mr Tripoom said.

Mr Tripoom did not ex-plain why this information was not forthcoming when contacted by The Phuket News on Monday (Feb 3) about the nightly water shutoffs from 10pm-5am now in effect on all local residents, or why this information was not posted publicly by Cherng Talay Municipality.

“We post only things that affect local people, but we only stopped supplying water to places where they have the budget to buy water by themselves,” Mr Tripoom said.

“We are trying hard to keep water for local people for as long as we can. Local people do not have money to buy water, but the owners of those places do,” he said.

“The operators [of the housing estates affected] have their own budgets to buy water by themselves, while some of those places even have their own water sources and water to spare,” Mr Tripoom repeated.

Regardless, Mr Tripoom added, “All operators said they understand and cooper-ated well.

“We do not know when water supply will be back to normal. At this stage, we just have to wait for the rain to return or find another new water private company to buy water,” Mr Tripoom said.

Khunanya Wanchanwet

The notice announcing the nightly water shutoffs.

Water outages hit Cherng Talay

“that involves import to a computer system of forged computer data, either in whole or in part, or false computer data, in a manner that is likely to cause damage to that third party or the public”.

If found guilty, perpetra-tors may face up to five years in prison or a fine of up to B100,000, or both, he added.

Vice Governor Supoj warned people over posting or sharing news that does not declare its source.

“The current situation has found that there is a lot of false news that undermines the credibility and confidence of Phuket,” he said.

“I want everyone to check before sharing any informa-tion on your social media or even face to face,” he added.

Phuket Governor Phaka-phong Tavitaptana has set up a fake news “task force” to target and investigate fake news reports online, Vice Governor Supoj added.

“There is a working group to monitor fake news pre-senters in social media,” he confirmed.

Vice Governor Supoj con-

firmed that he has been ap-pointed to lead the working group with the assistance of the Phuket branch of the Internal Security Operations Command (Isoc), which serves as the political arm of the Thai military.

“Media that is fake news creates panic among citizens and tourists. Such actions are considered as an offense under Article 14 (1) of the Computer Crimes Act,” he said.

“Phuket Airport has already reported one case for prosecu-tion, in which damaging mes-sages and clips of Phuket have been presented to the public, including some people pre-senting panic messages about visiting Phuket and people in Phuket becoming infected,” Vice Governor Supoj explained.

“All such messages cre-ate panic and cause damage to Phuket. Therefore, we ask the public to be careful when sharing [posts online].

“In addition, the working group will check various false news posts and reports in order to solve the problem and reduce the damage that will occur to Phuket,” he said.


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POLICE AR E TRYI NG TO TR ACK down a mother whose dead baby was found swaddled in rags and left in a drainpipe near a workers’ camp in Thalang.

Lt Sopanat Nayao of the Thalang Police was called to the scene, in Soi Na Neua in Muang Mai, at 2:30pm last Friday (Jan 31).

Officers found the remains of a baby wrapped in a bundle of rags in a drainpipe near an abandoned workers’ camp.

Lt Sopanat did not report who discovered and reported finding the baby’s remains.

He also did not speculate how many months old the baby was or its gender, though a photo presented to The Phuket News showed the baby appeared to be nearly fully formed.

“We are waiting for doctors at Thalang Hospital to provide more information about the remains,” he said.

Lt Sopanat said he believed that the child’s mother was a Myanmar woman who stayed at the camp before it moved on.

“Kusoldham Foundation workers reported taking a Myanmar woman who was bleeding to Thalang Hospital last week,” he said.

The cause of the bleeding was not reported, he added.

“We believe the mother aborted the baby and left its remains in the pipe before she left with the rest of the workers in the camp,” he said.

“We are still investigating this and looking for the mother,” Lt Sopanat assured.

Eakkapop Thongtub

Officers found the remains of a baby wrapped in a bundle rags in a drainpipe near an abandoned workers’ camp. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Baby’s remains found in drainpipe near abandoned workers’ camp

Tanyaluk [email protected]

Official bags B10k turtle nest reward

A national park officer in Phang Nga has received a B10,000

reward for discovering a turtle nest on Thai Muang Beach on Jan 31 as part of his normal duties patrolling the beach in search of any fresh turtle nests.

Chonnasorn Suwanrit, a park officer at the Khao Lampi – Hat Thai Mueang National Park, discovered the nest on the beach in front of the Thai Muang Industrial Community Education College last Friday (Jan 31).

After careful considera-tion, namely that the section of beach is usually busy with visitors, a decision was made to move the eggs from the nest to a safer site on the beach near the national park office.

Mr Chonnasorn received the reward on Tuesday (Feb 4) from Prarop Plangngarn, Chief of “Operation Center 2” at Sirinath Marine National Park, on Phuket’s northwest coast.

Rewards being offered for people reporting find-ing turtle nests is part of a new preservation initiative

launched late last year.T h e f u l l r e w a r d i s

B20,000, but Mr Chonnasorn received B10,000 because he is an official, Mr Prarop explained.

“In general, people will get the B20,000 reward from the Turtle and Habitat Con-servation Fund,” he added.

The relocated eggs are now under constant surveil-lance, Mr Prarop assured.

“We set up a fence to

prevent people stealing the eggs or disturbing the nest in any other way, and the nest is under watch by officials 24 hours a day,” he said.

“We are all so excited to see the eggs hatch and baby turtles go out to explore the sea. If anyone sees a turtle nesting on a beach, please call us at 076-679134 so we can quickly protect the eggs and take care of them,” Mr Prarop added.

The turtle nest discovered on Thai Muang Beach last Friday (Jan 31) is now under 24-hour surveillance. Photo: Phuket Marine National Park Operation Center 2

THE LAND & HOUSES Park residential community project in Chalong is once again experiencing compli-cations with its wastewater system.

The Phuket News was alerted by residents at the compound that there were foul smells coming from the drains and surround-ing areas. It appeared, on initial inspection, that the water was not flowing and was very sparse in supply.

The same compound experienced issues last February when foul and polluted water was run-ning through the estate and neighbouring areas and into Chalong Bay.

“It is the same area that we were informed about in February last year,” confirmed Chalong Municipality sanitation division officer Phawita Rithdaeng.

When asked why the issue has re-occurred Ms Phawita claimed, “It might be due to the drought sea-son as water is in minimal supply and does not flow as freely. The dry and hot

conditions have certainly contributed to the supply being exhausted.

In relation to the of-fensive smells and how the drainage issue will be solved, Ms Phawita replied, “We have contacted Land & Houses Park manage-ment office who oversee facilities and asked them to deal with the problem.

“They claim they will respond by checking the drains and water flow is-sues at the village imme-diately.”

“If they are unable to solve the issue, we may have to inspect the situation together with officers from Environment Regional 15 office,” Ms Phawita added.

Khunanya Wanchanwet

The water in the drain ran a polluted, shiny black. Photo: Supplied

Dirty water runs foul in L&H housing estate


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5PHUKET NEWS


Boy, 7, savaged in dog attackMass roundup of strays will not solve problem, urges Soi Dog

Soi Dog Foundation and Lanta Animal Welfare are urging Krabi Pro-

vincial Governor Pol Lt Col (Rtd) ML Kitibodee Prav-itra to revoke his order to round up and impound stray dogs at tourist hotspots in the province after a 7-year-old American boy was attacked by a pack of stray dogs at Ao Siao beach, west of Ao Nang.

The boy, Nolan Jess An-derson, 7, was playing on the beach while his father was exercising nearby on Jan 18 when he was set upon by a pack of about eight dogs.

The father heard Nolan’s screams and rushed to rescue him from the attack, but by that time the boy had suffered multiple bites, with deep puncture lacerations under his left arm from when he held his hands up to cover his face.

The father rushed Nolan to a naval unit nearby. Personnel there helped take his son to Wattanapat Hospital Aonang.

At the hospital, where Nolan was under close ob-servation for five days, Nolan received stitches for multiple bite wounds and given tetanus and anti-rabies shots.

Nolan was discharged from hospital the following weekend, and he and his par-ents travelled to the north of Thailand, officials confirmed.

EchoesThe dog attack on young Nolan echoed another attack in February last year, when 5-year-old Finnish boy Eemi Nikula who was savaged by a pack of dogs on Ao Nang Beach, just a handful of kilo-metres from Ao Siao.

News of the attack made internat ional headlines, prompted a personal visit

by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha and saw His Majesty The King of Thailand dispatch a representative from the Royal Palace to person-ally present a gift basket and a bouquet of f lowers, and his best wishes for a speedy recovery.

The dog attack on Eemi also sparked a mass roundup of stray dogs in the area as the nation at that time was gripped by fears of a rabies outbreak.

Mass roundup

Governor ML Kitibodee on Jan 18 ordered all government offices involved to respond to the incident and give their full assistance. He later also ordered officials remove all stray dogs from popular beach areas for tourists’ safety.

Junelachat Junelaphet, a veterinarian with Krabi Provincial Livestock Office, confirmed to The Phuket News that the dogs involved in the attack had been removed from Ao Siao Beach.

“A team of livestock of-ficials along with staff from the Nong Thale Tambon Ad-ministration Organisation [OrBorTor] removed eight stray dogs from Ao Siao

Beach that day (Jan 18),” Mr Junelachat explained.

“This beach is a small one, so officials caught all dogs there quickly,” he added.

“All eight dogs are now with Lanta Animal Welfare on Koh Lanta. They are ob-serving the dog’s condition for 30 days to make sure they do not have rabies,” Mr Junelachat said.

“After we have have con-firmed that these dogs are safe, we will ask for people to contact the foundation to take the dogs in and give them a new home,” he said.

Asked if the mass roundup of dogs as ordered by Gov-ernor ML Kitibodee was underway, Mr Junelachat said, “Not yet. We are work-ing on it.”

A better wayNon-profit animal welfare organisations Soi Dog Foun-dation (Soi Dog) and Lanta Animal Welfare (LAW), based on the islands of Phuket and Koh Lanta respectively, re-cently met with Governor ML Kitibodee.

Also present at the meet-ing were representatives from local OrBorTor, the Krabi Municipality Office, the De-

not an effective, long-term solution. Operation of such shelters is costly, requiring veterinary and duty staff as well as food and medicine, all of which must be provided for the lifetime of the dogs housed there, he explained.

Mr Sakdapol suggested that provincial budgets would be better spent on a long-term sterilisation and vaccination programme, which is proven to be the most effective way to humanely and sustainably reduce stray dog populations.

Soi Dog’s “Catch, Neuter, Vaccinate, Return” (CNVR) programme has reduced the stray dog population in Phuket by over 90% and has been a significant contributing factor in the island reporting just one confirmed case of rabies in 24 years, said a release by Soi Dog issued today (Jan 30).

Similarly, there have been no reported cases of rabies in Koh Lanta in the past 15 years thanks to LAW’s neuter and vaccinate programme, the release added.

Soi Dog and LAW said they acknowledged Governor ML Kitibodee’s position that

partment of Livestock Devel-opment and the Krabi Hotel Association.

In order ing the mass roundup, Governor ML Kiti-bodee has already ordered every local municipality and OrBorTor to create their own dog shelters in each of their respective areas, Mr Junela-chat told The Phuket News.

However, Soi Dog’s Com-munity Relations Manager Sakdapol Thongjan explained that temporary shelters are

incidents like that at Ao Siao Beach negatively impact the tourist image of Krabi.

“However, impounding the dogs addresses the symptoms of the issue and not the root cause. It has been shown that when dogs are cleared from an area, packs from neighbour-ing areas soon move in. With reduced competition and a good supply of food (from garbage), they breed fast, and within a year or two, the dog population in the area climbs back to where it was before,” said the release.

Mr Sakdapol stressed that the best solution is to catch, neuter, vaccinate and then return the dogs to their terri-tory. Managing the population and keeping the dogs healthy in this way will enhance the province’s image, he said.

“Naturally, there will be dogs with health issues or be-havioural problems who can-not live within communities and should instead be cared for in a shelter. However, the shelter is a secondary solution and should run in conjunction with a CNVR programme,” the release added.

Krabi Governor Pol Lt Col (Rtd) ML Kitibodee Pravitra ordered the mass roundup after American boy Nolan Anderson, 7, was attacked by a pack of dogs on Ao Siao Beach. Photo: PR Dept


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OPINION6

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CHRIS HUSTEDExecutive Editor084 307 [email protected] Fifteen years working in news and covering local issues and events in Phuket, with 18-month hiatus spent working for the Brunei Times on Borneo. From Queensland, Australia; 10 years living in the UK before moving to Phuket in 2000. Degree in business management.

Spare time spent sailing or with family.

BEN TIREBUCKNews / Sport Editor061 806 8132 [email protected]

UK born and bred but living and working overseas for 20+ years. A career working in sales, market-ing, news and media has seen him based in Shanghai, Sydney, Tokyo, San Diego and Singapore. Most

recently with Thomson Reuters and Bloomberg, both in Singapore. Ambition in the heart, not in the head.

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PURIYA BEAVAN Editor

The Tour Guides DilemmaRe:3,000 tour guides in Phuket out of work as Chinese arrivals plunge

Local people took eve-rything for granted and now they will learn a lesson that without tourists, Thailand could collapse. Seems like justice for all the challenges Farang have been facing with immigration officials.

Mustapha Jebbanema

Thailand relied on Chi-nese tourists, they bent over backwards to please them. They forgot about the coun-tries where tourists have been coming for decades.

Simon Kidd

Maybe time to focus on raising the quality of the infra-structure? Reviewing security policies?

Daniele Zarka

I’ve been to Phuket 10 times over the last six years. I can’t see myself returning for a while due the exchange rate and to quote the locals, everything “same same but different.” That’s right eve-rything’s the same just more

expensive. The only thing that will bring me back will be that I’ll miss the many friends I’ve made over there

Philip Morris

As the Thai owner of a mini mart said on Nai Harn to my friend just a few days ago, “we happy no Chinese.” Yes, they boost numbers but they do not boost local Thai trade. It all goes to Chinese operators (hotels, guides, restaurants and tours) and goes back to China, very little stays in Thailand except their garbage.

Mark Horsfield

I don’t think it’s the virus.It’s just not a cheap holiday destination any more. Used to be popular with Aussies for this reasons.Plenty more options now for same costs.

Donna Randall

Masking the problemRe: Price control for face masks as virus raises demand to 40-50m pieces

The masks don’t even work against the virus. It’s actually worse because it’s so hot over here you sweat in your mask

and the bacteria stay in there so you start breathing in that old bacteria and get yourself sick. People who think masks stop the virus are unaware of droplet viral transmission. You’re better off washing your hands often as this is not an airborne virus...yet.

Clint Macbeth

Cultural Incensitivity?Re: Incense burning falls under air pollution spotlight

Yeah, burning plastics and emissions from vehicle that need valve jobs or new rings is no big deal. Give me a break!

Frank Stein

Wastewater fines go up in smokeRe: Opinion: For a Brunch of Brunches

Well said. One cigarette on the beach = big fine but flush waste water and s*** into the canals and beaches and it’s only B10,000?

That is a joke and they should do as you say, start at one end and work through every location and fine every-body a minimum of B50,000.

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Some chickens certainly came home to roost this week as Thailand’s – and

Phuket’s – tourism industry started to reel from the fallout of the Wuhan coronavirus out-break and the ensuing plunge in the number of Chinese tourist arrivals.

For those who believe the fallout is from nothing more than scare mongering in the media and overreacting by for-eign governments, that raises a good question. Big numbers are being bandied about. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that since Oct 1, 2019 an estimated 19-26 million Americans have been infected with seasonal flu, resulting in 180,000-300,000 hospitalisations and an esti-mated 10,000-25,000 flu deaths. That’s just the US alone.

The trick with the Wuhan coronavirus in comparison is that we are only now learning its true fatality rate, and we still have no idea how contagious it

really is – other than it seems to spread much faster than its viral cousins SARS and MERS. Put that virus in Asia, where close-quarters living in cities already poses a very high communicable disease risk, and the result could be devastating. Right now “better as safe as possible" seems to be an appropriate approach.

And the spotlight on Thai-land is fair. With Thailand easily among mainland China’s most popular f light holiday destinations, just the sheer number of mainland Chinese coming to this country, before the travel bans, warranted concern.

The dramatic fall in the number of all tourist arrivals, not just from China, this past week comes after a year of Thailand trying to come to terms with the appreciation of the baht and losing many tour-ists from traditional markets of higher-spending tourists. For far too long Thailand’s tourism

industry has been overdepend-ent on a diet of “fast food”, easy-to-get lower-spending tourists with no focus on the health of the tourism industry overall.

For individuals the simple advice, especially made famous by the Chinese health minister amid the “swine flu” outbreak, “If you don’t want to get sick, stay healthy” seems to be best. Many people right now are learning to not take their health for granted. The Wuhan flu, like any other serious form of influenza or pneumonia, is more dangerous to the very young, the old and the infirm. Ask any mothers about their babies or anyone categorised in the latter two and they will tell you that any day with good health is a good one.

Eat well, get rest, stay hy-drated and keep clean, and you should be fine. It’s that simple.

It’s a pity the same approach wasn’t taken with the country’s tourism industry.

Bet the problems get sorted quickly then. Also once fined, give them two months to change/fix things and then re-check, after which if it is still not good, fine them another B50,000+. This would make a HUGE difference.

Brent Cowey

Why does this keep happening?Re:Russian woman, 34, drowns at Patong Beach

I know I am not what I consider a strong swimmer. I do not wonder out into surf or any deep water without a floaty of some kind for safety. Unfortunately not all people think this logically while on holiday. RIP is all we can say for those who fall victim to their choices.

James Bahr

I just got home from there and saw so many people swim-ming in areas with red flags that said no swimming. It’s so reckless. We could see the rip tides from where we were stand-ing. I just don’t understand why people would put themselves in danger like that. Everyone wants to think because they are on vacation nothing bad can happen.

Corrie Gowan

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Chinese coronavirus af-fecting Phuket tourism

Six more tourists suspect-ed of infection in Phuket

China virus hits Phuket tourism

Three new tourists in Phuket suspected of car-rying Wuhan virus under observation

Cruise tourists from Sin-gapore checked for Wuhan flu at Patong Beach

Coronavirus outbreak pos-sible in major tourist centre

Chinese girl, 4, from Wu-han cleared of coronavirus in Phuket

Thailand confirms first local transmission of coro-navirus

Doctor debunks viral post claiming Wuhan coronavi-rus death at Phuket airport

3,000 tour guides in Phuket out of work as Chinese arrivals plunge


@thephuketnews

7THAILAND NEWS

Bangkok Post

BANGKOK

Tax deadline moved because of outbreak

The Cabinet has pushed back the deadline for the filing of personal

income tax to support individu-als and businesses hit by the coronavirus outbreak.

Those required to pay taxes are allowed to make their pay-ments until the end of June, as opposed to March, said Fiscal Policy Office (FPO) Director Lawaron Sangsanit on Tuesday (Feb 4).

He said the extra time for payments is among the tax measures adopted to help the virus-hit tourism sector.

The other tax measures are slashing excise tax on jet fuel from B4.726 to B0.20 a litre until Sept 30; allowing firms to deduct twice as much as their expenses for organising seminars in other provinces this year from their taxable income; and allowing business operators to deduct 1.5 times as much as their spending on renovation this year.

The government forecasts

these measures will cost about B4.5 billion in state revenue to implement.

Mr Lawaron said the FPO is ready to consider a call by bus tour operators to cut excise tax on fuel which is currently collected at five baht a litre.

Government spokeswoman Narumon Pinyosinwat said the delay in personal income tax payment is intended to provide breathing room for those who have tax burdens.

“The government believes these measures are worthwhile and their rollout is at the right time… to support the economy and maintain its expansion.

“The FPO assesses that the coronavirus situation will ease in three months and the country’s economic growth is likely to be 2.8% as projected. There will be more measures to stimulate the economy,” she said.

According to Mr Lawaron,

state-run banks will also provide low-interest loans worth a total of B123bn to tourism-related businesses with interest starting at 3%. Moreover, loan repay-ment stipulations and fees will be relaxed.

SME Development Bank is offering a six-month debt mora-torium for collateral repayment to borrowers with good track records, the Government Sav-ings Bank is introducing debt suspension of up to five years and Thai Credit Guarantee Corporation will suspend credit guarantee fees for 12 months.

“The Finance Ministry and the Bank of Thailand agree that these measures will not be the last. More measures will be rolled out when it’s time,” he said.

Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said the cabinet has also approved in principle a budget of B500 million to boost the tourism industry.

He said Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has in-structed the ministry to draw up a proposal with details as soon as possible.

The first locally infected patient was declared free of the coronavirus and dis-charged on Wednesday (Feb 5). Photo: Apinya Wipatayotin

First locally transmitted virus patient is ‘cured’

THE FIRST PERSON TO test positive for locally trans-mitted coronavirus, a taxi driver, has been declared com-pletely cured and discharged from hospital.

Four Thai evacuees from Wuhan who had a fever have also been tested and found negative for the disease.

Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Wednesday (Feb 5) the first person to be infected in Thailand had been treated, cleared and discharged by Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Institute. All relatives and people who had been in contact with him were also free of the virus, he said.

The man was among nine virus patients who had now been cured and discharged. The number of patients remaining in local hospitals had dropped to 16, Mr Anutin said.

“The remaining patients are recovering and are likely to be declared cured in the near future. Those who developed serious symptoms also suffer from other diseases and are old,” the minister said.

Health officials said the

DOCTORS ARE WARNING PEOPLE against self-prescribing the so-called “coronavirus cure,” after recent reports said a combination of flu medication and anti-retroviral drugs for Aids was effective in treating patients who tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

At a press conference held on Tuesday (Feb 4) by the Royal College of Physicians of Thailand, Sasisopin Kiertiburanakul from the Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, said the combination of Lopinavir and Ritonavir had been used for 20 years but was discontinued due to unwanted side-effects. Also, it is too soon to confirm if this combination can actually fight the virus or if it can affect the efficacy of other medications.

Asst Prof Opass Putcharoen, chief of the Centre of Emerging Infectious Diseases, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, said it was important to stop the spread of the disease, and for that people should wear face masks.

“The greater number of infections, the greater the chance of deaths because there are no drugs to fight the virus. We can only treat patients for the symptoms. Those who should be careful are people over 40, and those with diabetes, hypertension and heart disease,” he said.

Risk groups such as tour guides who work with Chinese tourists should also see the doctor if they develop a sore throat or

cough. He also advised people to avoid crowded areas, and said it was not necessary to wear a mask unless one has a cough.

However, Khate Sripratak, cardiolo-gist and president of the Chest Disease Institute’s medical staff organisation, said masks were important for protection from both the virus and fine dust.

“The novel coronavirus is new, there’s no cure nor vaccine yet, but we know it spreads fast. It’s true that those who are ill should wear face masks, but we don’t know who is ill,” he said. Not being able to find an N95 face mask himself, Dr Khate said other kinds of masks should also help.

“Some protection is better than noth-ing,” he said. Bangkok Post

People are advised to wear masks and not self medicate. Photo: Bangkok Post

Don’t self-medicate: doctors

THAILAND

THAILAND

Photo: BKP Graphics

first locally infected and now cured patient was a taxi driver, 50, who had carried Chinese passengers. He was praised for ceasing to drive his taxi when he felt ill and going to see a doctor right away. The man tested positive for the virus at Taksin Hospital in Bangkok, and was transferred to the Bamrasnaradura Infectious Diseases Institute on Jan 28.

At Sattahip naval base in Chon Buri province, Deputy Public Health Minister Sathit Pitutecha said that of 138 Thais evacuated from Wuhan city on Tuesday (Feb 4), six had a high fever.

Initial examinations did not detect the coronavirus in any of the evacuees. Their 14-day quarantine period will end at midnight of Feb 18, he said.

Bangkok Post


thephuketnews

THAILAND NEWS8

Bangkok Post

BANGKOK

Thai ‘Eye in the sky’Twice-postponed satellite set for launch

What has been dubbed as Thai-land’s first military satellite is set to be launched next

month, according to the the Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF).

The European Space Agency has scheduled the launch of the Napa-1 satellite on an Ariane Vega rocket at the Guiana Space Centre, in French Guiana, South America, on March 24, an RTAF source said Monday (Feb 3).

The launch has been postponed twice, first in September last year and then in December.

Napa-1 will have cameras that will play a crucial part in the Royal Thai Air Force Defence System, strengthening national security and preventing threats, the source said.

The RTAF set up a space operations centre on Aug 16 last year in a bid to enhance its operational capacity and upgrade the country’s capacity in space missions.

The centre is also expected to play a role in supporting disaster-mitigation operations.

The new centre aligns with the air force’s strategy, which includes “space” as a key domain for operations ranging from surveillance and patrol to the crea-

tion and maintenance of satellites and tracking of space objects.

The RTAF reportedly plans to propose a draft law to regulate and supervise space operations conducted by the air force and other government agencies.

Meanwhile, the national committee on space policy has set up a sub-committee to map out a policy and operations plan on tracking and keeping tabs on other satellites and orbiting objects, to keep pace with growing space traffic.

Chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon, the panel has as-signed the Defence Ministry to draft the policy and the operation plan with support from related agencies, said Maj Gen Patchasak Patirupanont, spokesman

for Gen Prawit.Maj Gen Patchasak said the formation

of the panel is in line with the country’s 20-year draft blueprint on national space policy (2017-2036).

He said Thai communications satel-lites, survey satellites, and tiny satellites for educational purposes were already in orbit.

The growing number of space objects and debris orbiting Earth meant Thailand had to enhance its tracking and surveil-lance capabilities to avoid collisions and service disruptions, he said.

He added that Gen Prawit had also urged the Digital Economy and Society Ministry to speed up drafting plans on developing Thai space missions.

An Ariane Vega rocket at the Guiana Space Centre, in French Guiana, South America, similar to the one that will carry the Napa 1 satellite. Photo: AFP

A HOUSE COMMITTEE is pushing for control measures to be relaxed enough to allow the possession of no more than 20 leaves of kratom (Mi-tragyna speciosa) for personal consumption.

Thepthai Senpong, Demo-crat Party MP for Nakhon Si Thammarat, chair of the committee assigned to solve problems related to marijuana, hemp and kratom, said the committee will ask national police chief Pol Gen Chakthip Chaijinda for more information on the matter.

Mr Thepthai said it has been proposed that an indi-vidual who possesses no more than 20 leaves of the narcotic for personal consumption should be spared legal action.

Justice Minister Somsak Thepsutin and Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul will also be asked if it is pos-sible to legalise krathom, Mr Thepthai said.

Pharmacists, representa-tives of the National Farmers Council and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will also be asked for opinions, he added.

The committee will also gather feedback from people in the South where consump-tion of kratom is widespread, before the committee presents all the information to the House of Representatives to relax the law on the narcotic. This is expected mid-year.

Kratom is still categorised as a Type-5 narcotic substance under the 1979 Narcotic Drugs Act. The law does not allow production, consumption, sale, import, export or possession of the drug, unless permitted by the Public Health Ministry on a case-by-case basis.

The FDA previously sug-gested that the government legalise krathom because experts have found it has medicinal properties and is also a good anaesthetic.

Bangkok Post

Proposed new legislation is seeking no more than 20 leaves for personal use. Photo: Bangkok Post

Kratom personal use push underway

BANGKOK

A TRUCK DRIVER SUS-pected of brutally killing and dismembering the body of a police investigator confessed that he killed out of jealousy because the victim was having an affair with his wife.

Kalasin police pressed three charges of homicide, premeditated murder and arson against Amornlak Jitkoh, 45, after he confessed.

Mr Amornlak was tracked down to a forest in Nakhon Ratchasima province on Mon-day (Feb 3) and arrested on suspicion of brutally murdering Pol Lt Col Jamras Dolchua, 57, inspector of the suppression division in Rong Kham police station in Kalasin province on Sunday (Feb 2) evening.

Police quoted Mr Amorn-lak as saying that the victim was having an affair with his wife, and that consumed by jealousy he had stabbed the police officer more than 20 times. He also claimed to have hacked off the victim’s genitals and thrown them in a fire he set in the house in a fit of anger.

Mr Amornlak told police that he was drunk when he went to the victim’s house in Kalasin’s Kamalasai district, where he set fire to Pol Lt Col Jamras’ car to lure him out.

The suspect said the vic-tim was alive despite the stab wounds until he cut off the man’s genitals. He said he also planned to kill his wife, who had run away after being warned.

Pol Lt Gen Charoenwit Sriwanit, chief of Provincial Police Region 4, told media that the victim had met the suspect’s wife while investi-gating a crime in the province,

and acknowledged that the two were having an affair. He also said that the victim had been warned to end the affair.

A son of Pol Lt Col Jamras had told the police that his father usually stayed overnight at a house in Kalasin town. He occasionally spent the night at the wooden house at Ban Noi Pattana in Kamalasai district.

The son claimed his father formerly had an affair with the woman who told him she was a divorcee. The father later reputedly stopped their relationship after learning that the woman was not divorced.

Bangkok Post

Police and rescue workers at the house where Pol Lt Col Jamras Dolchua was found murdered on Feb 3. Photo: Yongyuth Phuphuangpet

Man charged with murder, mutilation of policeman

KALASIN


@thephuketnews

9BUSINESS NEWS


TOURISM

Some 3,000 Chinese-speaking tour guides in Phuket are out of work

and need financial assistance to pay their living expenses, Phuket Professional Guide Association Deputy Chief Natthakorn Ruengrote revealed this week.

Mr Natthakorn explained that there are about 7,000 tour guides registered to work in Phuket, reported Post Today.

Of those, an estimated 3,000 are qualified and regis-tered to lead tours in Chinese language, he added.

“This time of the year is usually the peak season for Phuket tourism, but now more than 3,000 Chinese-speaking guides have no work because of the fall in the number of Chinese tourists [coming to Phuket],” Mr Natthakorn said.

Even the guides not specifi-cally trained to lead Chinese tours are being affected, he added.

“In this situation, we have to adapt ourselves and cooper-ate with officials to promote tourism,” Mr Natthakorn stressed.

“Tour guides have to adapt and improve themselves by learning more languages used in Southeast Asia and work more with airlines, such as AirAsia and Nok Air, to pro-mote tourism in neighboring

countries,” he added.“The target groups should

be middle-class people in each country, and attract them by giving them promotions to come during the Songkran festival [Thai New Year] in April,” Mr Natthakorn said.

“Our association also wants a soft loan from the government in order to keep our industry going in this situation,” he urged.

“I predict that the corona-virus will affect Phuket tour-ism longer than six months, and more tourists will not come until October,” Mr Nat-thakorn added.

ARRIVALS PLUNGEConfirmation of the dire situ-ation was initially confirmed by statistics posted by the Tourism Authroity of Thailand (TAT) Intelligence Centre last week, marking huge falls in

the number of international tourists arriving in Phuket for the same period last year.

Monday last week (Jan 27) the number of arrivals had fallen 12.04% year-on-year. The next day that number blew out to -29.8%, and by Wednesday last week (Jan 29) the number of arrivals had plunged by 32.98%.

International ar r ivals Thursday last week (Jan 30) recovered to a fall of “only” 8.6%, but the plunge returned in full vigour last Friday (Jan 31) as total international ar-rivals – not just Chinese – fell by 38.64% year on year.

The number of interna-tional arrivals last Saturday (Feb 1) “recovered” somewhat to a plunge of 30.23%, before nosediving again with Sunday (Feb 2) seeing the plunge blow out to -41.04%, then again to -44.22% on Monday (Feb 3).

Face mask vendorswarned for gouging

THE GOVERNMENT IS putting face masks and alco-hol-based hand sanitiser on the state price control list as part of efforts to deal with the deadly virus outbreak.

Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit, who chairs the central committee on prices of goods and services, on Monday (Feb 3) said the com-mittee approved inclusion of face masks and alcohol-based hand sanitiser on the list and will propose the move to the Cabinet on Tuesday (Feb 4), reported the Bangkok Post.

Once on the price control list, manufacturers, distribu-tors, exporters and importers must inform the Internal Trade Department the production cost, sales prices, production volume, export and import volume and stocks as well as price labels. Those who export more than 500 pieces need to gain prior approval from the department.

Similar measures are ap-plied to hand sanitiser, except for the limit on export volume as there are still adequate quantities for domestic de-mand.

The chief of the Com-mercial Affairs Phuket office, Sasiwimon Mongkhon, last week warned all people and businesses selling face masks to clearly have prices marked on face masks for sale, and to not stockpile face mask sup-plies, or else face legal action.

Ms Sasaiwimon explained

last Friday (Jan 31) that the Ministry of Commerce had ordered Commercial Affairs officers to inspect the prices being charged and the num-ber of face masks currently available for sale throughout Phuket.

“Every shop has to clearly mark the prices for face masks with big price tags, and do not take advantage of this sensi-tive situation to increase the price of the face masks,” Ms Sasaiwimon urged.

“If an officer finds a shop selling face masks at unrea-sonable prices, the shop owner will face punishment under the Price of Goods and Services Act B.E. 1999, which carries a penalty of up to seven years in jail or a fine of up to B140,000, or both,” she warned.

“Anyone who finds unrea-sonable prices being charged for face masks are urged to report it by calling the Com-mercial Affairs hotline at 1569 so officers can investigate immediately,” Ms Sasiwimon added. The Phuket News

An official from the Tourist Assistance Centre (TAC) at Phuket International Airport assess a small queue of travellers at the international terminal. Photo: TAC

3,000 tour guides out of work as arrivals plunge HEALTH

A nurse at Vachira Phuket Hospital shows how to correctly wear a face mask. Photo: PR Dept

ASSURANCESPhuket Governor Phakaphong on Monday told a meeting of key figures in Phuket’s tourism industry that the government is doing everything it can to curtail the spread of the virus and still promoting tourism to the island.

“Phuket has implemented strict measures to prevent pneumonia from the new virus on Jan 5 with disease surveillance measures, disease prevention and control meas-ures, tourism measures and measures on public transport to reduce the impact of the virus, which includes both fiscal and financial remedies,” the Governor said.

“Phuket has discussed with the private sector to revitalise the tourism industry of Phuket now and in the future in order to reduce the economic impact that will occur,” he added.


thephuketnews

BUSINESS NEWS10

Balancing landlords’ rightsThailand’s revised, more landlord friendly, residential lease law

In March of 2018, we de-tailed a Previous Notifica-tion under the Consumer

Protection Act (1979) that went into effect on May 1, 2018 and which regulated residential structure leases, for example, leases of houses, apartments and condominium units. However, that notifica-tion raised significant ques-tions regarding its applica-bility, as we also explained.

Then, on Oct 31, 2019, a New Notification of the Contract Committee Re: The Stipulation of Residen-tial Property Leasing as a Contract-Controlled Business was issued.

The New Notif ication went into effect on Jan 30, 2020 and repealed the Pre-vious Notification. And al-though the New Notifica-tion largely followed the provisions of the Previous Notification it significantly

revised and reduced the rights and protections of the lessees (and, thereby, increased the rights and protections of the lessors) covered by the New Notification. Unfortunately, however, the New Notifica-tion did not resolve some of the most significant unan-

swered questions raised by the Previous Notification.

The New Notification provides the following:

• “Residential property leasing business” means a business that leases five or more property units to indi-

public order or good morals, the lessor can terminate the lease, effective immediately.

These new provisions make it much easier for a landlord to terminate the lease contract than under the Previous Notification, which required the lessor to provide the lessee with 30 days’ notice of any breach of the contract during which the lessee could cure the alleged breach.

The New Notification has also significantly revised, in a largely landlord-friendly manner, what a covered lease agreement is not allowed to include as follows:

Under the Previous Noti-fication, the lease agreement could not exclude the lessor’s liability for breach of the agreement or tort against the lessee. However, now the lease agreement may exclude the lessor’s liability for any “non-material” breach of the agreement or any “justifiable” tort against the lessee.

The New Notification al-lows the lessor to require a total advance rental payment plus security deposit in an amount equivalent to three months of rent payment. This provides more security for the lessor than the Previous Notification’s one-month ad-vance and one-month security deposit limitations.

Under the Previous Noti-fication, the lessor could not confiscate the security deposit or advance rental payment. However, the New Notifica-tion allows the lessor to do so if the reason for doing so is due to the lessee’s fault.

The Previous Notification did not allow the lessor to enter the property without prior notice to the lessee. But the New Notification allows the lessor to do so to avoid harm to the lessor or others.

Under the Previous Notifi-cation if the lessee defaulted on the lease agreement, the lessor could not prevent the lessee from entering the property nor could the les-sor enter the property and seize the assets of the lessee. Under the New Notification, however, the lessor can do so as long as the lessor first properly terminates the lease agreement.

However, although the New Notification provides that lease agreements “made under” the Previous Notifica-tion before this New Notifica-tion comes into force will be valid until their termination date, it still fails to clarify crucial questions as to its applicability.

vidual lessees for residential proposes. “Lessor” means anyone who leases property for residential purposes and receives a rental fee from the lessees in return. This remains unchanged from the Prior Notification.

• “Property” means a house, apartment, condo-minium or other residential property. However, dormi-tories, hostels and hotels that are regulated under separate statues are excluded. This too remained unchanged by the New Notification.

• A tenant or “lessee” can terminate the lease agreement by giving 30 days’ notice. However, unlike the Previ-ous Notice, the New Notice requires that at least half of the lease term be expired before the lessee can exercise this right.

• With regard to termina-tion by the landlord or “lessor”, the terms under which he can do so must be displayed in the lease agreement in a format that is clearly visible, such as typed in red or bold and black font, or font that italic and underlined. But the New Notification further provides and categorizes the landlord’s termination rights as follows:

• If the lessee breaches a provision in the lease contract the lessor can terminate the lease by serving a written notice to the lessee at least 30 days in advance;

• If the lessee’s action directly disturbs the peaceful living of other tenants, the lessor can terminate the lease by serving a written notice to the lessee at least seven days in advance; or

• If the lessee does not comply with the law relating to

For example, what does “made under” mean. As we explained there is a strong argument that the Previous Notification applied retro-actively to lease agreements entered prior to the effective date of the Previous Notifica-tion. If that is the case, then all agreements made prior to the effective date of the New Notification were “made un-der” the Previous Notification. Consequently, are all relevant landlords, including those whose relevant lease agree-ments were entered into prior to the effective date of New Notification and who have been, for example, charging a premium for utility service, now obliged to stop charging their mark-up from that date forward?

Furthermore, it remains unclear how the New Noti-fication applies to real estate projects, particularly condo-miniums, that have marketed long-term prepaid leaseholds to foreigners. Are they now required to return all pre-paid rent save for up to one to possibly three months in advance? And are such long-term prepaid lessees now allowed to also termi-nate their lease agreements for good cause per the New Notification?

In any event, the New Notification (like the Previous Notification) certainly appears to end the common long-term prepaid leases in develop-ments that are marketed to foreigners in Thailand.

Undoubtedly the New Notification provides sig-nificant, and arguably fair, protections to residential lessees in Thailand. It also strikes more of a balance with regard to the rights of covered lessors than the Previous Notification. And, ultimately, the applicability of the New Notification to contracts entered before May 1, 2018 may not withstand judicial scrutiny, particularly a constitutional challenge.

But, for now and in any event, the potential for dis-ruption in Thailand’s real estate sector due to the New Notification appears to remain just as significant as under the Previous Notification.

Duensing Kippen is an inter-national law firm specialis-ing in business transaction and dispute resolution mat-ters, with offices in Bangkok and Phuket, Thailand and aff iliated off ices in over 75 other countries. Visit duensingkippen.com

LAW

Jerrold KippenTax & Law ExpertDuensing Kippen

The ‘New Provision’ puts more power back in the hands of the landlord. Photo: Maria Ziegler / Unsplash


@thephuketnews

someone who needed it. Although we only helped one person, I think it

shows that if we really put the time and effort, we could help people all over the world who need it. This project also showed the true capabilities of technology and how this will hopefully be utilised in the future to help more in need, despite some of the disadvantages or concerns.”

Student Arsenii Barbashov stated, “Throughout the project, I only had a positive and inspiring experi-ence. Although our group helped only one person, it is still a great achievement for us and our school...

Continued on page 12

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020The guardian we all

need at the moment 14 The Gentleman are perfect gangsters 17

British International School Phuket (BISP) IB students Melanie Preen, Michael Larsson and Arsenii Barbashov, should be extremely proud of themselves, having recently made a significant impact to the life of a five-year-old girl living in Bangkok born with amniotic band syndrome causing the loss of her left arm.

Amniotic band syndrome, according to Michael Harrison MD, is a rare condition caused by strands of the amniotic sac that separate and entangle digits, limbs, or other parts of the fetus. This constriction can cause a variety of problems depending on where strands are located and how tightly they are wrapped, and in her case, these bands were wrapped around her left arm, causing a significant reduction in the flow of blood, ultimately resulting in a loss of her limb just below the elbow

“Joern, the little girl’s father, contacted me after reading an article in The Phuket News about our students having the capability to 3D Print prosthet-ics.” said Jonathan Clark, head of ICT & computing at BISP.

“The team then took charge of the project, working with scale photographs of the girl’s arms to accurately produce a suitable fit, and after much hard work and perseverance to perfect the 3D designs, the students were successful in printing and assembling the arm to

Students develop a 3D prosthetic limb to help a little girl in BangkokBISP OFFERS A HELPING HAND

the required specifications.” he added. “The BISP team CAS project, involved the crea-

tion of a fully functional prosthetic arm, utilising to the fullest extent, the technological opportunities at BISP.”

Inspired by the project and his students, Jonathan added, “It has been overwhelmingly satisfying for the students to see images of the girl wearing their 3D Printed creation. Although the family did not wish for the images to be made public, they are extremely grateful to Melanie, Michael and Arsenii, and are thrilled to see their little girl getting used to her new arm.”

The Phuket News spoke with the students about their involvement in the project and how it has made an impact on their own lives and future goals. With quite a touching altruistic mindset, they shared their thoughts.

Michael Larsson stated, “I was extremely happy to be part of this project which could help someone. Around the world, there are people who are put in un-fortunate situations, and for several reasons may not be able to help themselves, whether it be financial, social or other factors. So I think it is important that those who do have the resources should help out those who don’t. Considering my interests and hobbies, I saw this project as more of an opportunity rather than activity. I had the opportunity to both learn from this new experience with the 3D printing and some of the 3D designs, and also had this opportunity to help

Jonathan Clark & The Phuket News

Melanie and Michael of BISP cheerful from their hard work.

The prosthetic arm.

PEOPLE THEPHUKETNEWS.COM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020

thephuketnews

12

Continued from page 11…community as it is well known that the hardest part of every great project is doing the first steps. The perfect re-ward from completing this project was knowing that you helped to improve someone’s life. Moreover, when you are making a prosthetic arm, you are put-ting a part of your soul into it, which makes every prosthetic unique. Now reflecting on our project, I think that we, and society as a whole, should be aiming to provide bigger opportunities for everyone and that everyone must be

given a chance for success.”Melanie Preen wrote to The Phuket

News to say, “I am glad to have joined this project as I know that I’ve made an impact on someone’s individual life. My motivation for the project was to enhance the plethora of skills needed in today’s society being: problem solving, decision making, benevolence and ap-plying technology to alleviate problems. For instance, through available resourc-es online, we were able to learn how to craft the prosthetic hand by combining 3D printing and build these printed

components tangibly. Throughout the process, we were

able to enhance these aforementioned skills through collaborative efforts and heuristically understanding the capabilities of technology in our digital age in impacting the day-to-day life of a little girl. Overall, this project al-lowed me to propel my aspirations to be a female role-model for the STEM community and emanate impactful at-titudes towards our school community. I hope that me and my teammates will continuously emulate our success in the future – by utilising technology to deliver solutions that are much needed in our world full of environmental and social issues.”

After following up with Mr Joren a few months after his daughter received her new prosthetic, he stated she is do-ing quite well. “She had been asking for a few months after initially contacting BISP, “Daddy when am I getting my new hand,” so now that she has it she is quite excited. Of course there are some adjustments that need to be made as life with the articulating prosthetic is new for her. As with wearing a new pair of shoes there is time needed to break them in and similarly she is working on getting used to the weight and me-chanics of the prosthetic. She was very happy to assist in the design of her prosthetic, choosing pink for the prima-ry colour, and purples for the highlights and articulating components.” Mr Joren added that while at times it may be a challenge for his daughter to get used to the new limb, Mr Clark and the CAS student group at BISP IP are continu-ously working with her to improve the ease and comfort of the articulation, expressing that her 3D printed pros-thetic is a vast improvement over her first prosthetic, which was primarily aesthetic in nature when she was two years old.

Jonathan Clark said of the project, “The work undertaken has fully en-compassed what CAS is all about and stands for, that is Creativity, Action and Service.”

According to the amputee coali-tion, 3D printing is a relatively new but promising technology available to amateurs as well as professionals. Free, editable designs are available online without copyright. Anyone with access to a 3D printer, such as the students at

Reaching out through learning

BISP IB program, and creative mental-ity, can create a prosthesis at quite a reasonable expense.

A prosthetic hand can cost hundreds of thousands of baht; however, a 3D-printed prosthesis could be made for as little as B1,500.

3D-printing materials cannot yet replace the long-term durability of tra-ditionally-made prostheses. However, this will soon change. In the meantime, technology is making cost-effective prosthetics a reality and encouraging creative people from all over the world to participate in their design.

Right now, suggests the amputee coalition, the field of 3D-printed pros-thetics is in its infancy, and many models are still in the developmental stage. The 3D movement inspired many to take matters into their own hands in a “do it yourself” spirit, providing the tools for many to make home made prosthetics. This practice is now in-fluencing the professional market in how professional-grade prosthetics are made.

We can expect to see, suggest the amputee coalition, more companies prototyping various prosthetics using 3D-printing technology. 3D printing us-ing higher-end metals such as titanium and other alloys is not common practice now, however, they are expected to be more so in the future.

For more information contact Jonathan Clark: [email protected] Jonathan Clark Head of ICT & ComputingDistinguished EducatorGoogle Certified Educatorhttp://ilearnbisp.blogspot.com/

Arsenii holding one of the prototypes.

The 3D printer creating the prosthetic. Melanie and Michael.

13COMMUNITYTHEPHUKETNEWS.COM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020

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Khunanya [email protected]

Phuket Rajabhat University student project was selected as one of ten finalists in a Creative Ideas competition in order to reduce the number of car accidents in Thailand. The competition was hosted by Roojai.com, Thailand’s leading

online car insurance provider. The idea contest titled ‘Roojai.com’s

Road to The Future’campaign invited university students from across Thai-land to propose how technology can be used to reduce road traffic incidents and improve Thailand’s status as one of the world’s most dangerous driving environments together with the aim of bringing fresh ideas on how to drive more safely while embracing the objec-tives of Thailand’s 4.0 national digital initiative.

The selected idea under the name ‘Knows Well’ was presented by three members of ‘Easy Normal’ team, from Phuket Rajabhat University: Mr Koonnatham Kengkaew, Miss Nitiya Thipthapthai, and Mr Eua-angkul Khwansrisut. All three are second year students majoring in Faculty of Man-agement Science.

After reviewing accident reports, the team found that road conditions such as pot holes, roadside debris, drainage grates, and other such obstacles, are a leading cause of accidents. The team proposed a solution by affixing a smart camera with artificial intelligence which would evaluate the terrain and warn the driver of the upcoming condi-tions in advance to reduce the speed and take evasive manoeuvres.

New Media Creativity lecturer for Communication Arts course, PhD Suthasinee Nirattimanon, explained that she presented her students’ idea to this competition, as it related to the course.

“I submitted all ideas from the ten student teams in my class, and one was selected to be among the ten finalists. I want my students to apply what they have learned towards inventing new products or even just to develop existing concepts,” she said.

Additionally, the finalists were se-lected to attend a workshop earlier this

month (Jan 11-12) at Roojai.com’s head office in Sriracha, Chonburi and take part in the road safety lecture conducted by the Department of Highways. They were able to learn and develop their ideas with public and private sector industry professionals from the Department of Highway, G-Able; ION Go developer and Toyota Tsusho Nexty Electronics, the good driving behaviour app and staff of G-Able Co Ltd, which created iON Go application, and future technology for cars by Toyota Tsusho Co Ltd.

Each group of students presented their final work and were assessed by these experts. The criteria included creativity, practicality and effectiveness of their ideas and solutions, as well as their presentation quality and team-work. Winners were awarded B100,000 for first place, B50,000 for second place, and B30,000 for third place, along with the opportunity to have their idea devel-oped with the support from Roojai.com.

Awards were given on Sunday (Jan 12). Camlife team from Prince of Song-kla University placed first receiving the B100,000. In second place was The Blank team of Mahidol University, re-ceiving B50,000, and in third place was VoodooCam team from Bangkok Uni-versity, winning B30,000 respectively.

Professor Nirattimanon said of her students, “Even if they didn’t win, I’m so proud of my students to be selected as the top ten among the 42 creative ideas presented from every part of the country. It could be great if someone can make their idea happen” she ex-plained.

Roojai.com founder and CEO Nicho-las Faquet explained his company is

very focused on improving road safety in Thailand and thus the objective of this competition is to raise awareness of road safety and to encourage young people in academia to solve the these problems together.

According to the WHO Global Status Report on Road Safety 2018, road traf-fic deaths in Thailand ranked 9th in the world, ranking the highest in ASEAN for traffic death rate, with 32.7 deaths every 100,000 people. Road traffic in-jury is now the leading cause of death for children and young adults.

Mr Faquet said, “Road safety is our priority and Roojai.com would like to play our part in reducing accidents and making roadways safer for people. It’s

inspiring to see young people create solutions that are useful for their com-munities. In addition, we are grateful to the experts who take the time to join and share useful information.”

“The contest goals are to find the best ideas and solutions to make the roads safer and an opportunity for us to find new talents. In addition, we would like to create a platform for Thai stu-dents to show their skills and to raise awareness of road safety for young gen-erations,” said Mr Faquet.

Mr Faquet further explained that Roojai.com, being a car insurance op-erator, has a vested interest in road safety and seeks to reduce the number of car accidents to make Thai roads safer for all motorists, and was quite pleased to see the amount of young peo-ple who came together to work on road safety solutions.

Unsafe conditions aheadPhuket Rajabhat University student project runner up for road safety goals

Phuket Rajabhat University student project was selected as one of the final ten teams. Photo: Mitsinee Chumboon


thephuketnews

14 CULTURE

Those of us who are a little old-er and a little more grey, have witnessed a lot of changes in how we get our news every day. Thirty years ago, it was quite common to see throngs of people reading the morning newspaper and clutching a

cup of coffee as they took in the head-lines of the day. Newspaper stands were everywhere back then. When unex-pected disasters happened, it was quite common for the local papers to send youthful employees straight out into traffic and sell you the breaking news while you waited at a red light.

Alas, those days are largely gone now. Many newspapers have succumbed to social media and changing tastes. Successful papers like The Phuket News are an exception and no longer the rule. However, I still read at least one newspaper everyday and I recently read a local Thai-Buddhist reference which confused many Western readers.

The Bangkok Post recently published an interview with well-known celebrity,

Mr. Surachate Hakparn, about an injus-tice he suffered when his automobile was riddled with bullets. When asked about his situation, he said he was confident that the facts of his case would come out, stating, “Thailand is protected by the guardian deity Phra Siam Devadhiraj. Corrupt people will eventually bear the results of what they did.”

The story did not go on to explain who this deity is, so many Western readers were left befuddled by the refer-

ence. It does not help that an internet search yields only the most Spartan information on this deity. So, for this issue of All About Buddhism, I thought it might be helpful if we were to explore this deva’s past.

Phra Siam Devadhiraj is also known in Thai as Phra Sayam Thewathirat, but we will use the English name for the sake of simplicity. This deity is what might be called a ‘tutelary deity’ or, in other words, a spirit who defends a particular place. Many ancient West-ern cultures, like Greece and Rome, also had their own spiritual guardians.

Technically speaking, English-lan-guage texts often label Phra Siam De-vadhiraj as a Hindu-Buddhist deity. Yet, this deity did not rise to official promi-nence until after the 1855 Bowring Treaty was signed in Siam. This was a time when much of South East Asia was at risk of being colonized.

Burma and the Malay States be-came British colonies in 1886 and 1786, respectively. Cambodia became part of a French protectorate in 1887 and Siam traded Laos to the French after losing an engagement with French gun boats in 1893.

Thai history is unique because it not only repeatedly recovered from a num-ber of previous invasions, but Thailand would be the only South East Asian country to avoid sustained colonization by Western powers. Thus, the prospect

of a guardian angel is certainly easy to envision.

A golden statue of Phra Siam De-vadhiraj was cast during the reign of King Mongkut (1851-1868). This beauti-ful icon was originally located inside the Grand Palace’s Royal Chapel, but later was moved to the Phaisarn Thak-sin Throne Hall.

The statue itself is quite beauti-ful. Cast of pure gold, it was originally fixed upon a sandalwood base which had been carved using traditional Thai artisan skills. The base proudly bears an image of a great Naga (celestial dragon), as well as a Thai phoenix.

The statue also bears the images of four utterly supreme deities known as Vishnu, Uma, Narayana and Srasvati, all hailing from the Hindu traditions.

Having said that, I can only imagine that some readers would very under-standably wonder if this is actually a Hindu shrine. My answer, however, would be that it truly is uniquely a Thai Buddhist shrine- not only because Phra Siam Devadhiraj has risen to become the guardian angel of Thailand, but also because some concepts in Bud-dhism actually first arose in Hinduism such as karma and the water rituals of Songrkran.

Moreover, Siamese culture believed in a supreme guardian angel for count-less centuries. King Mongkut, however, composed a Pali chant and provided a renewed vigour and angelic name for an old tradition which hailed from antiq-uity. A gala is still held at the statue of Phra Siam Devadhiraj during the tradi-tional Thai New Year in April.

Regardless of the etymology, Phra Siam Devadhiraj’s role as a great pro-tective spirit continues to endure. Ref-erences to Phra Siam Devadhiraj still appear in the modern Thai news from time to time, and it is not unusual for Thais to call upon this deva in times of vast despair.

Thailand is indeed a mysterious land, but the unusual ways in which Thai people approach modernity really do start to make perfect sense when we curious Westerners are successful at unravelling Siam’s transcendental past. It’s a difficult challenge, but one with great rewards.

Guardian of ThailandPhra Siam Devadhiraj the Deva of protection for the people of Siam

Jason A. [email protected]

ALL ABOUT BUDDHISM

Phra Siam Devadhiraj. Photo: TouronThai.com

15DININGTHEPHUKETNEWS.COM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020

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THE CULINARY DETECTIVE

Chris [email protected]

I must admit that my friends per-ceive me to lead a fairly charmed and somewhat envied life, drift-ing from one ‘fancy’ restaurant to another, without ever the need to reach for one’s credit card. How-ever, I frequently challenge this rose-coloured spectacle view of my

gourmet travails, pointing out that they are unaware that on many occasions, as I prepare to venture out, my stom-ach and honestly, occasionally, even my desire to eat are far from stimulated at the prospect of a ten-course tasting menu composed of obscure ingredients in questionable combinations that would never appear on anyone’s list of favourites, with the exception of the talented young chef offering them that particular evening.

Indeed, having to eat a certain dish when that’s not what you really want, is far from pleasurable. I recall the same exact feeling, when as a child, my par-ents would gently instruct me to, ‘eat your greens’ or equally horrific, ‘clear your plate,’ before allowing me to leave the family dining table to watch what was probably a mindless episode of a fortunately now long defunct TV series.

Back to the here and now, some-times, all you wish for, is a shepherds-pie or a satisfyingly overindulgent fry up. I smile as I recall a little more recently than my childhood memories, the days when driving around the UK, all I craved for was a ‘Little Chef Early Starter’ and a mug of strong tea. I would almost drain the petrol tank prolonging my stop till I found a filling station with one!

As those who regularly read my column, I am more often than not com-menting on a swish new restaurant, so when invited to pop in to Angus O’Tool’s in Karon, bearing the above in

mind, I was in fact truly delighted. Lo-cated a short walk from Karon beach, I arrived late morning to meet partner and chef Maurice or Mo to the commu-nity. Mo has been here for 20 years, in fact since Angus O’Tool’s opened.

From Birmingham originally, ac-cent still noticeable and for those of you who know this city, as is his sense of humour with a Tuesday special of Brummy Balti curries! I am introduced to Mo’s friendly and enthusiastic team of manageress Plaa, Toy her assistant, bartender Nisa and waitresses, Ratee, Fon and June. I sit down and despite an extensive menu offering the classics and several tempting specials – more of later – I immediately spy the ‘Big Bhoyo Breakfast.’ Chef Mo takes me in to the kitchen to meet the cooks who are now preparing their Karon version of my fondly remembered classic. I meet both Peung and Joy who have been with Mo since the beginning, so many years ago.

I then return to take my seat no-ticing even at this early hour several regulars enjoying tea, whilst reading the headlines from thoughtfully down-loaded English newspapers. I ask for similar and am swiftly brought one I could potentially stand my spoon up in, absolutely perfect!

Perusing the menus, I notice specials, offered on particular days, including home cured ham and colcannon, liver and onions and on Sundays, roasts of sirloin of beef, leg of lamb, pork loin and chicken with sage and onion stuffing, all accompanied with roasties and York-shire pudding. Friday is pie day with a choice of chicken and mushroom or steak and kidney and on Saturdays an Aussie black Angus steak is served up; I quickly snap a photo of the dishes and days and make a mental note to return.

My breakfast arrives and does not disappoint; two soft and slightly runny fried eggs, back bacon, sausage, black pudding, golden fried bread and of course a spoonful of baked beans, ac-companied with slices of toast with condiments. There is also a less com-

prehensive version available, the ‘lek bhoyo’ or indeed a ‘build your own.’ Mo joins me and has chosen to eat his sig-nature lamb shank.

In between mouthfuls of this delec-tably tempting dish, he narrates his story, having spent many years in the UK elevating pub grub to new heights, also working for a classy London mem-bers club, where he had the honour to cook for HM The Queen, he eventu-ally relocated to Phuket and to Angus O’Tool’s. He has endeavoured over the years to cement his current establish-ment’s reputation as a friendly environ-ment for everyone. An example of this is the cutely named, ‘wee folk’s’ menu, fea-turing lots of kid treats such as pizza, spaghetti and mini burgers.

When families visit to experience the umpteen sports shown on a mul-tiple of large screens, the kids can be well catered for. Staff offer me a refill

Angus O’Tool’s – a slice of Irish hospitality!A successful blend of Irish, Brummy and Thai hospitality….in Karon!

of my tea whilst Mo tells me about the guesthouse element of Angus’; a num-ber of smartly kitted out rooms upstairs which are competitively priced. Having almost managed to conquer my plate, it is time to bid farewell to Mo, his team and Angus.

I haven’t talked about the tropical feel to this cosy and welcoming venue or indeed the other dishes on the menus providing many reasons to return. So, when you are seeking a down to earth, homely evening of classic comfort food and friendly service, go visit and discov-er for yourselves, the charm of Angus O’Tool’s!

Chris is a former Michelin Guide In-spector who following an international career in hospitality spanning 30 years in both the Middle East and Asia, has now settled in Thailand and contributes a monthly restaurant column.

Big Bhoyo Breakfast

ART THEPHUKETNEWS.COM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020

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16

There are a lot of factors that have shaped me and my life, not the least of which are the-atre and plays. In this month’s column, I would like to wax just a bit introspective and explore what I have gained from my involvement in thea-

tre over the decades, apart from things theatrical, that is.

Now, that may sound odd, but it is my firm conviction that we garner enor-mous benefits from theatre other than the ability to do theatre. But what are they? I could give you a list from other people and writers who have declared the same thing, but I thought I would just be honest with you and myself and outline how I have benefited personally.

I was just about to write that I am by nature a shy person when I realized that isn’t really true. I think I became shy and somewhat withdrawn when I discovered at an early age that I was a universal outsider, an early specimen of what is now called a Third Culture Kid. As an American, I lived in foreign lands

from the age of four all the way through high school, and for most of my life since, neither belonging in the countries I lived in, India and the Philippines first, and many others since, nor in the USA. Especially in the US in my home state of Texas, when we were there on home leave, I felt alone and lonely.

There were three activities that consistently made me feel comfortable and free: reading, writing, and acting. Other kids were more athletic than I, more popular than I, but I was the kid who organized my neighbourhood, wherever we lived, into performing plays and sketches written and directed by me and performed my friends and me. At last, here was my thing, an area where I could shine. So theatre not only helped me overcome shyness, it gave me a place and a culture where I belonged that wasn’t dependent on having roots in physical ground somewhere.

I am eternally grateful, especially now as I grow older and struggle oft-times with memory, that at the age of five I learned to memorize, starting with a four-line poem in a school play. Since that time, I have memorized lines right up to today. In today’s world, with phone numbers, dates, and all sorts of facts literally at our fingertips, memorization is a dying art, yet it has

been found to be a major deterrent to Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. It keeps our minds sharp.

Plays introduced me at an early age to other cultures, other mindsets, other ways of seeing the world and other people. This, I believe, is an invaluable asset in today’s global world.

I learned teamwork and negotiation in theatre, because it is, like sports, a team effort with everyone having a role to fulfill. I have been the lead actor, a secondary actor, a walk-on, a stage-hand, a lighting technician, you name it, I’ve done it at some time, and found that what makes a play is all of those people working together.

I also found that the most pleasant experiences in theatre were working with people who listened to others, who were open to ideas other than their own, so at an early age I learned to value openness and adaptability.

As I went deeper into acting and playing roles, I learned a great deal of psychology from taking on various roles. I learned that most characters are neither black nor white, good nor bad, but somewhere in between, and they often have legitimate reasons why they think and act as they do. I found that nuanced characters were more interesting than two-dimensional ones and realized that people really are lay-ered, they are deeper than they may seem at first introduction.

The basis of a play and what makes it interesting is the change the main characters go through, and this taught me that people can change. There is hope for everyone.

Probably the most important thing I learned from being involved in theatre to various degrees for the last, dare I say it, sixty years is that a happy, ac-cepting, tolerant, diverse atmosphere

makes for a good team and consequent-ly good plays. As a teacher of acting, I have tossed about over the years which method of acting I adhere most to. I have benefited from and embraced almost all of them at times and have discovered that the greatest method of all is to let each actor find what works best for them, that a team of Thespians that work with each other in a spirit of camaraderie and friendship while finding their own voice and expression creates a true community, a family.

In theatre those families are likely to be made up of people of every kind, all races, nationalities, sexual orienta-tion, religions, political viewpoints, world views, likes and dislikes. And in those families, despite our differences, we find a meeting ground where we can agree and cooperate. And what could be better than that in today’s polarized, overly sensitive world?

Joel Adams is building a vibrant theatre community right here in Phuket. You can contact him at [email protected] or by phone on 093 6490066. Facebook: Theatrix Group

Prep School for Our Diverse World!Joel Adams

THE PLAY’S THE THING!

17ENTERTAINMENTTHEPHUKETNEWS.COM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020

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David Griffiths

Nobody quite does gangster film the way Guy Ritchie does. Ritchie basically made the genre his own after re-inventing it with modern day classics like Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch. And while cinema

goers have enjoyed Ritichie’s take on Sherlock Holmes and The Man From U.N.C.L.E. nothing he has done in re-cent years has ever captured that true magic of his early films… that was un-til now. Yes, The Gentlemen sees Ritchie return to the gangster genre, but also sees him return to form with his crea-tivity and stunning scriptwriting.

The film centres around Mickey Pearson (Matthew McConaughey – Dal-las Buyers Club) a gangster who has built a budding marijuana business across England. However when Mickey is shot in a bar a private investigator turned wannabe screenwriter named Fletcher (Hugh Grant – Love Actually) is employed by a newspaper to investi-gate the case. Not happy with his fee, Fletcher decides to cash in and try to blackmail Mickey’s right-hand man Ray (Charlie Hunnam – Pacific Rim) with a meandering tale that also involves oth-er crime figures like Dry Eye (Henry Golding – Last Christmas) and Coach (Colin Farrell – The Lobster).

The Gentlemen screams creativity from the get-go. Ritchie doesn’t make

the film an easy watch for the audience. The story doesn’t play in order, instead, the audience is fed bits and pieces of in-formation from a myriad of sources and at times it is up to them to work out what is truth or lie. Of course Ritchie also throws in the odd red herring to try and put you off the scent, and the result is a heightened sense of suspense as you are never really sure what is true, right down to character’s deaths, until it is spelled out for you in actual black and white. In true Ritchie style the way the plot is presented is also a stroke of genius.

Having Fletcher recount the story for Ray not only gives the filmmaker a way to show the different variations of the truth in a creative way but also allows Grant and Hunnam to have an amazing screen presence that both ac-

tors seem to embrace with two hands. Grant is truly sensational and de-

spite a long career to date, this is easily his best ever role. While the film is not a comedy, Grant uses his comedic tim-ing to further enhance the character of Fletcher and make him someone truly memorable. Nearly all of the scenes that the two actors share together feel like an intense theatre production and there is no sign of weak acting anywhere to be seen.

Anyone planning on going to see The Gentlemen should be warned though that while we have entered into a time of political correctness, Ritchie seems to ignore that with this film.

The language is perhaps the most extreme we have seen in cinema for awhile (but it does fit with the story-line) and of course this wouldn’t be a

Ritchie gangster film if there weren’t a couple of very violent on-screen deaths as well.

We mentioned earlier the brilliant performances of Grant and Hunnam but really there are a number of other actors who deserve credit for their work as well. Once again Matthew Mc-Conaughey shows why he is one of the best character actors going around at the moment while the big surprise here might be the performance of Henry Golding who breaks the shackles of his normal nice-guy persona by playing the very untrustworthy Dry Eye. Then of course there is Hollywood’s forgotten man Colin Farrell who seems to be hav-ing a ball playing the slimy Coach.

As far as gangster films go, there are none better than The Gentlemen. This is a true cinema tour de force that delivers a headbutt to the face of its au-dience. It leaves you in shock, it leaves you in awe, but beyond all else this is a film that you will want to watch over and over again. Guy Ritchie is a true magician of a filmmaker and with The Gentlemen he delivers some good old-fashioned creative magic.

5/5 Stars

David Griffiths has been working as a film and music reviewer for over 20 years. That time has seen him work in radio, television and in print. You can follow him at www.facebook.com/sub-cultureentertainmentaus

The Gentlemen: Ritchie is back!

18 ISLAND SCENE THEPHUKETNEWS.COM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020

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A WORLD PREMIERE IN PHUKET: BUBBLE DINING AT KEE RESORT’S SKY LOUNGEThe KEE Resort and Spa in Patong recently celebrated the official opening of its latest exquisite dining experience: a high-end Barcelona-made Sky Bubble, offering 360º panoramic views in absolute privacy on the KEE Resort’s rooftop. This new dining experience can accommodate two to eight guests, is climate controlled and free of rain and mosquitoes. How good can dining get?

Kat (left), and GM Luca (centre) floats the Bubble with friends at KEE Resort and Spa.Claire presents the awards.

PEPPERS SPORTS BAR AND GRILL'S ANNUAL GOLF DAYThe ever-popular event was held at Laguna Phuket Golf on Sunday (Feb 2) with 60 golfers enjoying the Phuket weather with clear blue skies and a pristine course at Laguna. The format was a Two ball Texas scramble with golfers battling it out during this day of good fun. Drinks, prizes and BBQ followed at Peppers Sports Bar in Tinlay Place, Cherng Talay.

Colin Mackay, author of ‘A History of Phuket and the Surrounding Region’, and friends. Team JB and friends.

19ISLAND SCENETHEPHUKETNEWS.COM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020

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THE WINNERS AND FINALISTS OF THE YOUTH TALENT COMPETITION 2020Last Sunday, February 2, saw more than 40 young contestants compete across three categories in the Phuket Academy of Performing Arts (PAPA) Youth Talent Competition 2020. Hosted at Blue Tree Phuket, the contestants faced off in Junior Vocals, Senior Vocals and Bands / Duos categories to win substantial cash prizes.

1st Bands and Duos - No Entry

2nd Bands and Duos - HeadStart Band2nd Junior Vocals - Nisha Udomaksorn (Mona)2nd Senior Vocals - Mia Ruby

3rd Bands and Duos - Holly and Lola

4th Junior Vocals (Outstanding Performance) Daria Kozlova

4th Senior Vocals (Outstanding Performance) - Tanyakan BoonyakajornLast year’s winner - Dasha D’Aria

3rd Junior Vocals - Yulia Shevchuk 3rd Senior Vocals - Julianna Mester

1st Junior Vocals - Tanyia Wheeler 1st Senior Vocals - Lilyjane Maraux

Sunday Roast All Day, All Night

Come enjoy a Traditional Sunday Roast EVERY SUNDAY at Two Chefs Kata Center, Karon, Kata Beach. Indulge in our Traditional Sunday Roast ALL DAY & ALL NIGHT for ONLY 445 Baht! En-joy a Large ALL YOU CAN EAT selection of your favorites! Featuring: Roast Aussie Beef, Pork Loin and Chicken. Roasted or Mashed Pota-toes. Roasted Mixed Vegetables Flavoured with Thyme and Garlic. Yorkshire Pudding and Gravy. Enjoy Live Music from 8-Late Performed by Our Famous Two Chefs Band! Come for the FOOD - Stay for the Fun. RESERVE Your Table Now Online at bit.ly/TwoChefsReservations Check out more details on our website at bit.ly/TwoChef-sEvents Reservations, Karon, Kata Beach, Kata Beach 076-333-370 Karon 076-286-479.

L’Aperitivo ItalianoFrom 18.30 to 21.00 for Baht 490+. Free flow of Italian Sparking - red and white beverages with pass around Cicchettis (Italian Tapas). L’Opera, L’Opera, Laguna Road, [email protected],076 271 430, 095 468 2248.

All you can eat Sunday Roast Buffet

Beef, Pork and Lamb – Cauliflower, Broccoli, Peas, Carrots, fried mushrooms, grilled toma-toes – Yorkshire pudding – roasted potatoes, mashed potatoes – gravy, mushroom sauce, mint sauce. Reservations recommended. B350 P/P. [email protected] 081 891 4381.

Phuket Street Food Buffet At Seedlings

RestaurantWednesday & Sunday l 18:30 – 21:00 Expe-rience the culinary diversity of a Street Food

20 EVENTS THEPHUKETNEWS.COM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020

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Mussels night @ Shakers1.2kg mussels served with French fries, your choice, your style: natural, marnière, Proven-çale, garlic and cream or Thai style. Reserva-tions recommended B295 P/P. [email protected] 081 891 4381.

ALL YOU CAN EAT BBQ RIBS

Come join us for our WEEKLY BBQ EVERY FRIDAY served ALL DAY & ALL NIGHT at Two Chefs Kata Center, Karon, Kata Beach. Indulge in All You Can Eat BBQ Pork Ribs, Chicken and Sides for ONLY 495 BAHT! Our BBQ is famous at Two Chefs! Come try us out and enjoy our mouthwatering pork ribs, flavour-bursting chick-en and more! Join us for Live Music from 8-Late Performed by Our Famous Two Chefs Band! Come for the FOOD - Stay for the Fun. www.twochefs.com Kata Beach 076-333-370 Karon 076-286-479.

High Tea@ChaoFah served with free Day Pass

to fitness and poolHighTea @ChaoFah serves more than 10 options of selected teas, delightful cream sandwiches, home-made warm scones with all the trimmings and truly Peranakan spe-cialties. in the surrounding décor of exqui-site Sino-Portuguese architecture. Every Saturday and Sunday from 2-5pm and special on Sunday, nice music from Annie Guzheng. Free for children under 12 years with complimentary day pass to fitness and swimming pool. RSVP +66 76 338 699. Ramada Plaza Chao Fah.

SATURDAY DINEWind down your weekend with stunning views of the sunset and free flow at The Boathouse Phuket. Join us for a 4-course set dinner and al-low our culinary team to surprise you with a menu that changes every week. THB 1300++ food only THB 1500++ with 2-hour free flow house - from our extensive celler THB 1900++ with 2-hour free flow premium - from our extensive celler. The Boathouse Phuket, 182 Koktanode Road, Kata Beach, Phuket 83100, Thailand, [email protected], +66 76 330 015-7, +66 76 330 561

FRI 7FEB SAT 8

FEB SUN 9FEB

DAILYEVENT

UPDATESON

SALIM KHOURY IS BACK AT THE NAI HARN

Find him Wednesday until Sunday at Cosmo Bar from 12.00-03.00 pm & 06.00 - 10.00 pm and try his signature drinks or have a drink pre-pared just the way you like it. Salim is avail-able for a masterclass on Thursdays and Sat-urdays between 01.00-03.00 pm for just THB 1,000 net per person. Choose two drinks from our extensive drinks list and learn how to make them like a pro. For more information please call +66(0)7638 0200.

FRIDAY LUNCHJoin The Boathouse Restaurant and celebrate the weekend before it starts. The best way to start your weekend is a 3-course set lunch with unlim-ited free flow from one of Thailand’s most exten-sive cellar. Time: 12:30 PM to 3:00 PM House pouring: 950++ Thai Baht per person Premium pouring: 1,450++ Thai Baht per person (free flow) The Boathouse Phuket, 182 Koktanode Road, Kata Beach, Phuket 83100, Thailand, [email protected], +66 76 330 015-7, +66 76 330 561

Xana Sunday BrunchAn extraordinary weekend with XANA Sunday Brunch at Angsana Laguna Phuket, spend quality time with friends and family, enjoying a one of a kind Sunday brunch on a perfect day of sunshine by the ocean at XANA Beach Club. Every Sunday from 12.00 to 15.30 hrs. Call 076 358 500, E: [email protected]

MON 10FEB

All you can eat BBQ night6pm – 11pm: Beef, Pork, Chicken, Burgers, Sausages, Prawns and Squid, Salad buffet, Choice of potatoes and sauces, bread, buns and garlic bread. Reservation recommend-ed. B395 P/P. [email protected] 081 891 4381.

All you can eat BBQ Ribs night

6PM – 11PM: All you can eat BBQ Ribs served with salad buffet, potato salad & choice of sauces. Reservation recommended. 295 baht P.P. [email protected], 081 891 4381.

THU 13FEB

BACK TO THE 70’S & 80’S EVERY THURSDAY NIGHT

Don’t miss out on our newest, exciting weekly event at Two Chefs. Come and join us for our special Cajun Grilled Chicken Breast served on a wooden plate with mashed potato, red wine sauce, and bearnaise sauce for ONLY 395 THB. Have a sweet tooth? Treat yourself to the Two Chefs banana flambé served with vanilla ice cream for ONLY 95 THB. Sit back and enjoy one of our drink specials as you listen to the famous Two Chefs band per-forming all your favorite retro hits and more! Live music starts from 8:30pm and goes late at all of our Two Chefs locations. Reservations are high-ly recommended. You can book either through our website at WWW.TWOCHEFS.COM or find us on Facebook at WWW.FACEBOOK/TWOCHEF-STHAILAND. Come for the food, stay for the fun! For reservations, call us directly at Two Chefs: Kata Beach 076-333-370, Karon 076-286-479.

Market and enjoy authentic local dishes repre-senting the best of Phuket and Southern Thai cuisine. Price: THB 499 net per person. For more information please contact: 076 271 888.

EVENTSTHEPHUKETNEWS.COM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020

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The Exotic Fishing Thailand 1.5 Million Baht

Tagged Fish ChallengeFrom Nov 1st to March 1st. Test your fish-ing skills Phuket and Catch a Monster fish and Monster Prize. 50 tagged fish with 50 prizes valued at over 1.5 Million baht. Any-one can enter for just 1,000 baht in addi-tion to your daily fishing ticket.......... Ex-otic Fishing Thailand, Phang Nga, exoticfish [email protected], English 088 379 9377 and Thai 081 199 5922.

SAT 29FEB

THU 20FEB

PIWC Annual Fundraiser 2020

Phuket International Women’s Club (PIWC) An-nual Fundraiser is set to be a wild night of Mardi Gras dining, dancing and revelry. The gala will be held at the Firefly Restaurant at the Pavilions Resort on Saturday, February 29 starting at 6:30 p.m. To purchase tickets at 2,500 baht per person for welcome drink, full buffet dinner, silent auction and dancing, contact [email protected] or www.thephuketnews.com/Phuket-ticket-master.php. Alternatively, for more information, go to the PIWC website at www.PIWC-Phuket.com

PIWC Lunch - February 2020

We were given such a fabulous welcome with great service and a fantastic lunch and an equally fab view. At Wyndham Grand, “The Deck Res-taurant” - Kalim. Buffet Lunch on Thursday 20th Feb 2020. Registration will be at 11.30am for a 12 start. Members - 700 Baht Non Members/Guests - 850 Baht. North ladies, there will be a minivan which will depart from the rear entrance of Twai Restaurant, adjacent to Villa Market. Ladies in the South, please carpool if possible or arrange a minivan due to parking. Please RSVP by email: [email protected]

SUN 16FEBFRI 14

FEB

SALA SEAFOOD LOVERS VALENTINE’S DAY

Sample all the Andaman Sea has to offer with our Signature Seafood Platter. Painted Phuket lobster brushed with herb butter and char-grilled over coconut wood. Spotted grouper marinated with soy sauce, ginger and garlic on a lemongrass skewer served on hot river stones. Jumbo black crab meat, tiger prawns, rock lobster and whole blue swimmer crabs served chilled on ice. Enjoy in the restaurant, on the rooftop or your own beach-front gazabo. only 3,200* Baht Reservation, Sala Phuket, 076 338 888

SALA SEAFOOD LOVERS VALENTINE’S DAY

Come join this Rotary Club of Patong Beach meet-ing to hear Khun Sirirat Chotivechkarn of Network

Valentine’s Day Dinner @ Friendship Beach ResortCelebrate a Romantic Valentines Day Din-ner @ Friendship Beach Waterfront Resort. Featuring a Special Four Course Menu in-cluding a Bottle of Wine THB 2,500++ Per Couple. Live Music with Colin “Illy” Hill. Regular Ala-Carte menu is also available. For reservations call (66) 89 728 5304 or email [email protected] Dis-counts not applicable on four course menu. ALCOHOL MAY BE A HEALTH HAZARD.Chef Charlie, 27/1 Soi Mittrapap Rawai Phuket 83130, [email protected], (66) 89 728 5304

Valentine’s Day dinner at The Racha

Dine under the stars this Valentine’s Day with a lovingly prepared menu from Chef Alexander Oddy at Fire Grill Restaurant at The Racha, Koh Racha Yai. From 6:30-9:30pm, THB 4,000 ++ per couple. Book-ings - [email protected] or call 076 383 655

XANA BEACH CLUB DINING UNDER THE STARS

THE ULTIMATE VALENTINE’S DINNER BY THE BEACH - Treat your loved one this Valentine’s Day with a special private dinner on the beach whilst watching the dramatic sunset over the Andaman sea. Pistachio and Foie Gras Terrine with Beetroot Tuile and Figs Compote Platter of Fin de Claire Oys-ters, Salmon and Tuna Strawberry Sherbet Surf and Turf with Phuket Lobster, Tiger Prawn, Beef Tender-loin, Lamb Chops and Marinated Chicken Rasp-berry, Lychee, White Chocolate and Honey Mousse. THB 9,500+ per couple. Including a flower bouquet, a bottle of Champagne and private butler. All prices are in Thai Baht and subject to 10% service charge and 7% government tax. Reservations are essen-tial. Alcohol May Be A Health Hazard! Reservation, XANA BEACH CLUB (Angsana Laguna Phuket), [email protected], 076 358 500

ROMANTIC CANDLELIT DINNER

Bodega & Grill is providing the perfect set-ting for a romantic dinner with your loved one, featuring a unique set menu to express your feelings in style while enjoying live music. For enquiries or reservations please contact: 076

EVERY DAY

Aussie Disaster Relief Golf Fundraiser

Tee times - 9:30am - 1:30pm (Book with Mark ASAP). Format - 4 man Texas Scramble. Members of Laguna Golf - THB 2,000, non-members - THB 4,000, includes gree fee, caddie fee, on-course nib-bles & refreshments at sponsored holes. A % of entry fee will be donated to the fundraising efforts. Book ASAP - [email protected] or 061 486 6736.

TUE 25FEB

358 500 or [email protected]. Pistachio and Foie Gras Ter-rine with Beetroot Tuile and Figs Compote Plat-ter of Fin de Claire Oysters, Salmon and Tuna Strawberry Sherbet Surf and Turf with Phuket Lobster, Tiger Prawn, Beef Tenderloin, Lamb Chops and Marinated Chicken Raspberry, Ly-chee, White Chocolate and Honey Mousse. THB 9,500+ per couple. Including a flower bou-quet, a bottle of Champagne and private butler. All prices are in Thai Baht and subject to 10% service charge and 7% government tax. Reser-vations are essential. Alcohol May Be A Health Hazard! Reservation, XANA BEACH CLUB (Angsana Laguna Phuket), [email protected], 076 358 500

Advisory Team provide the latest insights and ex-plain recent changes to the Thai tax regulations. Topics - Ways to reduce your personal income tax - What are Corporate taxes and any ways to reduce them - What are real estate taxes. This is critical information for every Expat living in Thai-land. Admission: 550 Baht which includes a full dinner. 7-9 PM. Location: Millennium Resort Pa-tong Phuket. For more info 081 894 0462.

TIME OUT THEPHUKETNEWS.COM FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2020

thephuketnews

22

Solutions to last week’s puzzles:

Answers to this week’s Pop Quiz:

1. Which vitamin is the only one that you will not find in an egg?

2. What is the meaning of the Greek word Pita?3. In which year did plants began to be classified into

fruits and vegetables?4. What does the word dinosaur mean in Greek?5. After which animals are the Canary Islands named?

Answers below,centre

Crossword by Myles Mellor & Sally York

1) Vitamine C; 2) Bread; 3) 1705; 4) Fearful Lizard; 5) Dogs

Across1. QB successes4. Business degree7. Spot for a nail10. Check12. Escort’s offering13. Mrs. Dithers in

“Blondie”14. Not manual15. “Strength , Courage

and Wisdom, singer, India

16. Persian Gulf state17. Activity with a list20. Boston newspaper21. Horse operas24. Drapers’ meas.25. Ed.’s in-box filler27. Funk band28. Grammy nominee in

2007: Corinne Bailey___29. Confront32. Black34. Suffix with senor35. Calendar spans, abbr.36. Internet explorer?41. Naval officer, for short42. “I knew a man

Bojangles and ___ dance for you ...”

43. Stock market term showing short-term trend, abbr.

44. The Buckeyes, briefly

47. Yak, yak, yak49. Experts51. It might be criminal55. Like a dryer trap57. “How steak is done”

sauce58. Rhine feeder59. Marshes60. Dwarf with glasses61. Ragout or burgoo62. Sauce made from

meat juices63. Ending for ordinals64. The Begleys

Down1. Cheap2. Mild expletive3. Instruments of India4. Helgenberger of

“CSI”5. A desperate

housewife6. US abbr.7. Drunkard8. Man-mouse

connector9. Attention11. Intensely bright star13. Pessimist’s word15. “___ to bed”16. Void18. Zoe’s friend, on

“Sesame Street”19. Nightbird cry

22. Skin tanners23. Take in26. Went downhill27. Tears29. Printing paper size

(abbr.)30. BBC rival31. Watch closely32. German city and

home of the Friedrich

Schiller University33. Calculations at sea36. One of 100 in D.C.37. Silverado, for one38. On earth39. Corporate concern40. Zilch44. Narcotic45. Packed away46. ____ and World

Report48. Explosives50. Times to calendar52. The Sweetest Taboo

singer53. Blast on a horn54. Proceed slowly55. JFK’s running mate56. Chit

SUDOKU

2degrees Celsius increase in the

average global temperature would shrink regions where wine

grapes can be grown by 56%.

4degrees Celsius increase would

threaten 85% of that land.

19The average American ate 19 different foods and consumed

nearly 11,000 calories on Super Bowl Sunday.

30Seconds of commercial air time costs about $5.6 million during

Super Bowl Sunday.

100More than 100 million people

watched the Super Bowl, making it the 2nd most watched annual

sports event in the world. Source: Uberfacts

GOT YOUR NUMBER

Hard

ISLAND VIEW

This week in historyFebruary 7, 2009The Black Saturday bushfires in Victoria Australia leave 173 dead in the worst natural disaster in Australia’s history.

February 8, 1983The Melbourne dust storm hits Australia’s second largest city. The result of the worst drought on record and a day of severe weather conditions, a 320 me-tres (1,050 ft) deep dust cloud envelops the city, turning day

Got an unusual or particularly beautiful picture of Phuket? Email it to [email protected]

into night.

February 9, 1971Leroy Robert “Satchel” Paige (July 7, 1906 – June 8, 1982) becomes the first Negro League player to be voted into the USA’s Baseball Hall of Fame.

February 10, 1258In a series of Mongol invasions, Baghdad falls to the Mongols, bringing the Islamic Golden Age to an end in the Middle East.

February 11, 1938BBC Television produces the world’s first ever science fiction television program, an adaptation of a section of the Karel Čapek play R.U.R., that

coined the term “robot”.

February 12, 1990Carmen Lawrence becomes the first female Premier in Australian history when she becomes Premier of Western Australia.

February 13, 1960With the success of a nuclear test code named “Gerboise Bleue”, France becomes the fourth country to possess nuclear weapons.

Source: Wikipedia

Satchel Paige Photo: Zimmerman (AP)

ISLAND VIEW

Phuket Town Walking Street. Photo: Mark Reddall


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Jobs The Phuket News

@thephuketnews

Admin assistant wanted - Part Time1. Social Media Officer - No need experience 2. Senior Search Engine Optimization (SEO) 3. Google Adverting 4. Social Media Specialist 5. Real Estate Sales Agent (Based on Kamala Full time) 6. Financial Officer 7. Project Construction Supervisor

(Expat) 8. Quantity Surveyor 9. Personal Assistant to CEO and COO 10. Senior Associate Attorney – Real Estate 11. Marketing 12. Architect HR-Bluehorizon-thailand, [email protected], 061 149 3233.

Good staff required (Thai)

Staff required for popular hotel in Patong. We have several positions available. Great starting salary and lots of extras including commis-sions. Potential to grow and develop with the business. Must speak English. Great career oppurtunity. [email protected]

URGENTURGENT


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Trades & Services The Phuket News

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HOME IMPROVEMENT

CLEANING SERVICES

MARINE SERVICES MARINE SERVICES

HOME IMPROVEMENT HOME IMPROVEMENT

HOME IMPROVEMENT

CORPORATE SERVICES

MARINE SERVICES

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Trades & Services The Phuket News

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SERVICE OTHERPERSONAL SERVICE

PERSONAL SERVICE PERSONAL SERVICEMARINE SERVICES


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Buy & Sell The Phuket News

@thephuketnews

JOBS

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

Loch Palm - Membership280,000+transfer. Call 083 388 8036 and Thai 089 972 5378.

BUSINESSES FOR SALE

BOATS, YACHTS FOR RENT

MEMBERSHIPS

MEMBERSHIPS

COMMUNITY

CARS, TRUCKS FOR SALE Nissan X-Trail SUV 2012

TOP DEAL - XTRAIL 2.0 - Only 49000 km, Automatic gear, leather, Top condition, 2nd owner, electric chairs, 10/2012, petrol motor B549,000, 0867479292, [email protected]

Loch Palm MembershipsLoch Palm Memberships with share (family) 340,000+1/2 transfer. Call 089 594 4067.

Golf MembershipPhuket Country Club. Family membership. Two golf courses. Walk or buggy. Reduces for quick sale. 300,000 baht plus transfer fee. Alan, [email protected], 084 065 7590

Oceanis 41 2015 as newThis boat is fully equipped for a world tour with electric platform, water maker, solar panel etc..... Very little used never rented B6,000,000, Jean Yves Fievet, 162/10 Danyd Road Moo 3 A Thalang 83100 PHUKET, [email protected], 0894708926.

Restaurant for saleThai food, Sea food restaurant at Karon beach for urgent sale. 1M, George, Karon Beach, georgio [email protected], George 081 088 1451. May 061 891 0243.

Mitsubishi Mirage 10/20189 months old, 9,000km, first class insurance. Like new. THB 360,000. Andy, Call 082 281 5976 ENG/098 059 8714 THAI

PROPERTY WANTED

Wanted: Social Media, BlogsMust have excellent social media skills on all platforms. Also looking for blog writer - Email CV - [email protected]

Reservations Assistant wantedSkills - Mother tongue English & excellent written English. Excellent computer skills. Home based. Send CV. [email protected]

Family membershipBlue Canyon Country Club for sale B550,000 I will pay the transfer. Lars 06-5758-2520 or email [email protected]

Play BridgeCome and join our happy group of Bridge players. Whether you are a begin-ning or champion, you will have a great time with people from many countries. Didier, 080 142 8122.

Allamanda 2 Bed FreeholdHi, Am looking for a 2 Bedroom Freehold Unit at the Allamanda in Laguna. Budget is 8 million baht. Can contact me on [email protected] Thanks in advance!

House Wanted in Chalong4 Bedroom House Wanted in Chalong for under 10 million baht. Please email me at [email protected]

Investor With 90 million THB of Clean Funding to Invest In Deep Sea Fisheries Project Required

Project would be eligible for Thailand Board Of Investment approval with 5 year tax breaks. Project calls for the importation / Thai Flagging-Registration of 2 fully operational Pelagic Tuna & Swordfish Longline Vessels currently operating successfully in the Indian Ocean Fishery. Thailand Domestic & Ja-pan Fresh-Chilled Auction Floor Export Markets targeted. Thai Captains / Australian-NZ Pelagic Longline Fishing Masters-Crew Trainers on each vessel with minimum 50% Thailand National Crew. Writer is Australian National Fish-ing Vessel Manager / Pelagic Longline Fishing Master / Marine Engine Driver / Crew Trainer who has been catching & exporting sashimi grade fish killed by the Ikijimi method to the Japanese Auction Floor since 1978. Advertiser has previously been employed as Chief Engineer on 1 of the vessels to be purchased & been employed as Captain/Fishing Master on the other Vessel to be purchased. It is time to develop the totally undeveloped Thai Flagged Pelagic Longline Fishery. Qualified Investors Post Your Confidential Register Of Interest to; Capt. Brad Durkin - PESCADOR SEAWAY Co., Ltd - P.O. BOX 144, Phuket Post Office, Phuket 83000.

Car rental @fair pricesLow season prices Monthly from 10,000 Baht. Daily from 400 BHT. High Season from 12,000 monthly. All our cars are in very good conditions at affordable prices. From 10,000 BHT monthly, Stig Johansson, 110/78 Moo 2 T Pa klok A Thalang 83110 Phuket, [email protected], 0848474377.

URGENT

URGENT

URGENT

PROPERTY FOR SALE

Superb large Laguna TownhouseBeautiful and completely renovated villa, new windows, doors, plumbing, air conditioning and much more situated on a large plot of 910 sq. metres in the heart of Laguna in a quite cul-de-sac of just 8 properties and walking distance of 5 minutes to Boat Avenue, Central and all

Laguna amenities and superb beaches of Bangtao and Layan. 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, large office/5th bedroom, fully fitted European kitchen, large lounge and dining with high ceilings, pool, relaxation sala , outdoor dining and wonderful gardens. Fabulous example of a Laguna Home and includes free membership of Laguna Golf Club for 2 adults and 2 children and discounts on all F and B and services throughout Laguna Phuket. 23.5 million Baht, [email protected], 0898737075.

URGENT SALE


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Buy & Sell The Phuket News

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Villa Mission Heights Big Pool

3bed, 3 1/2 bath, 330sqm living, 900 sqm land, very quite aera, 2 km mission hill golf, 6km UWC, 8 km airport. owner finance. 0870608400 engl/deutsch, price is negotiable. 10.9MB, [email protected]

RPM by ownerUnique luxury condo 2 bed, 2 bath, 155sqm. Foreign FREE HOLD. Architect remodel in tropical white. Jacuzzi. All round beautiful views. Completely furnished to a high stan-dard. Very motivated owner leaving Thailand. Available to agents. Priced just REDUCED to 15MB or offers. Contact Brian (Owner) [email protected] or 089 054 4354, 076 360 943.

COMMUNITY

Dream Village Phuket house2bed 2bath 295sqm land 100sqm living + ve-randa, compl. renovated.: new water, electric., tiles, paint in/out, windows, 3A/C, built in kitchen. 0870608400 engl/deutsch, price is negotiable [email protected], 66870608400

House in Boat Lagoon for rent

Boat Lagoon-Only 5 minutes from BIS, 3 bed/4bath. Great for families with kids. Furnished. Longterm (12 months or longer) Available now. 50.000, Clau-dio, [email protected], 0867479292.

Villa in Patong prime locationVilla in Patong , top condition. Can generate 1.3 MB tourist rental income/y . 3 bed, 3 bath, 160sqm living. Furnished, 12.9 MB o.n.o.. Ms. Manatchanok, 0800409411.

Sea View Villa on East Coast3,200 sqm land in a gated community, 4 bed, 4 bath, 1 maid room, European kitchen, office, gym, sauna, pool 4.5 x 10m, jacuzzi, laundry room, well water, carport for 3 cars. 39MB, [email protected], 083 633 1910.

PROPERTY FOR SALE

PROPERTY FOR RENT

PROPERTY FOR RENT

PROPERTY FOR RENT

URGENT SALE

White sand beach29 Rai with breathtaking views and 128 meter of white sand beach frontage on Koh Yao Yai , just 20 minutes from Phuket away , secure Chanote tittle , public concrete road , water, electricity and ready to build for sale direct from owner for only 5.5 mln per Rai. Montha, [email protected], 095 0147888.

Luxury Bangla RoadFreehold 60 SQM in Absolute Bangla Suites, very quiet. Rooftop swimming pool, bar, restaurant and panoramic view of Patong Bay. Bought 8.5MB, sell at 4.5MB. [email protected] or 081 894 8446.

OCEAN FRONT LAND7 Rai with 185 meter of ocean frontage, 800 meter from Yacht Haven Marina on Phangnga side, water, electricity, concrete road on the back of property, building permission for 12 two-storey pool villas. For sale direct by owner for only 6 mln Baht per Rai. + 66 95 0147888.

OCEAN FRONT VILLA3 Bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, 10-metre infin-ity swimming pool, maid quarter..., fully fur-nished and ready to move in.., usable area of over 330sqm....., very convenient located in a gated community at the south end of Ao Por, 50 metres from the ocean, 150 metres from

the new Sheraton Grand Bay Resort, 3 minutes from Ao Po Grand Marina, 20 minutes from Airport and shopping centers..., for sale direct by owner 22.9mln. +66 95 0147888.

2-Bed Furnished Kathu House for Rent

2bd/2bth furnished house for rent in Kathu near Loch Palm Golf Course. See link for more photos and details. www.kathuhouseforrent.com B13,500, May or Wes, [email protected], 0899733276

Stunning Ocean Views!

4 bed/bath large pool villa. Privately located in Cape Heights Cape Yamu. Furnished. Gardens. Fiber WiFi. 80,000/rent long term or 30 million to sell. Richard, Cape Yamu, Phuket, [email protected], +66824203270, WhatsApp

1 Bed Condo Sale Rawai

Saturdays Residence beautiful condo in Rawai. Tastefully decorated with class. Short drive to beach. All condo amenities. Looks so good that you do need to see to believe. You will fall in love at first sight. B6,300,000, Dimi-try, [email protected], 082 030 7199

1 Bedroom Condo Kata For Sale

Lovely condo at Utopia Kata for Sale. Com-pleted in 2017 and close to Kata Beach. Fully furnished. Close to restaurants and amenities. Great views. Rental programme. Full facilities. Dimtry, 082 030 7199. B7,100,000

Seaview Condo for sale KaronLuxury Condo for sale 300 m. from the beach. 100 sqm., furnished, parking, 4th floor, foreign freehold, 1 bedr. Long-term rent. Claudio, [email protected], 0867479292

Beautiful Phuket condo with a view of the islands

Very close to Ao Por Pier and Ao Po Grand Marina. 3 rooms 132 m / 2 with private terrace, 22m pool, 2 bath, aircon, security service, good shopping, private parking and sunrise over the islands every morning.

Fully furnished. Direct From Owner at only B5.3M, [email protected] +66 0804746609 +49 01738742350.

Secluded Rawai Pool VillaSecluded Rawai Pool Villa on 1,600 sqm land plot. A good opportunity to buy a well constructed and maintained three bedroom, two bathroom pool villa in large mature gardens in a very quiet, peaceful cul de sac. This private home of 172 sqm sits on a large plot with a Chanote land title. It is within walking distance from a busy main road with numerous restaurants, bars and assorted retail outlets.

Enter through the remote controlled front gate up the 70m long picturesque drive to park in either the double sized covered car port, or double garage, which also has a remote controlled electric door. The teak front door opens into a spacious main living dining area of over 80 sqm. There are marble floors throughout the property. The master en suite bedroom is 27 sqm, the second bedroom is 15 sqm and the third bedroom is 14sqm. The modern, western style kitchen / utility room of 14sqm has a Hafele oven and extractor hood and Smeg electric/gas hob. The room includes a very large side by side fridge freezer, wine fridge, plus a front loading washer drier. At the front of the villa is a 10m x 4m salt water chlorinated swimming pool with LED lighting. One end of the pool is a Sala with a table and 4 chairs, while at the other end is an outdoor Jacuzzi complete with an ornamental water feature. The properly is conveniently located close to the following loca-tions:- Saiyuan Road 2 minutes, Friendship Beach 5 minutes, Nai Harn Beach 10 minutes, Ya Nui Beach 10 minutes, Central Festival Mall 30 minutes. B23,900,000, Paul, [email protected], 0848384607.

1 Bedroom MaikhaoCondotelOne bedroom condo for profitable investment located at 4 star+ Maikhao beach condotel. 400 meters to the beach.Fully furnished.Full facilities.Restaurants,bars,fitness room.Rental programme. New,Open from may 2019. Price only 2700000 baht. +66936149082 [email protected] 2700000, Feliks Goldburt, 71 Moo 4 Maikhao Thalang Phuket Thailand, [email protected], +66936149082.

Large Detached HouseDetached House available April 1st to Oct 31st 2020. 3 en-suite bedrooms. Private Pool. Nice views. Contact Paul 0937934258 or email [email protected] for details. 30000 pcm, PAUL WHITTALL, Phuket Private Lagoon, Moo 6, Chao Faa West Road. Chalong. [email protected], 0937934258

CONDO FOR SALE THE DECK PATONG

44 sqm Condo for sale at THB 5,200,000 – Park-ing space included – Quiet Unit – email: [email protected] - 66937198098.

PROPERTY FOR SALE

PROPERTY FOR SALE

1 story building for rent

150m2 - Located in Allamanda 1 La-guna Phuket is available for rent. Rent is negotiable especially for long term lease. 096 646 6287.

Condo in Patong for Rent

Full-furnished studio with 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, living room, kitchenette, mountain view, and free wifi. 2 Rooms available; 66 sq.m and 88 sq.m. Start from 25,000 THB/month, Jane, [email protected], 062 842 4861.

New House for Long-Term Rent

Single house close to shopping mall, quiet area, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, furniture, 3 aircons, parking space, garden, shared pool.Wan, ไทย – English – Deutsch, Chalong, 0989724852

Superb sea views - Cape PanwaUnbelievable views over Cape Panwa from every room in this 4 Bed/6 Bath pool villa. Truly a magnificent large property with superb pool deck and entertaining facilities. Elevator installed and newly completely renovated. Must be viewed. 63MB, [email protected], 0898737075.

4 Rai land for sale in Pa KhlokBeautiful, flat and all services available. Situated on a side Soi just 400 metres from the main road to Cape Yamu/Ao Po Marina in 7 minutes and Heroines monu-ment in 5 minutes and 10-15 minutes from the airport/Blue Canyon/Laguna/Boat Lagoon and Royal Phuket

Marina. An oasis of peace and quiet yet in a superb location. Almost square piece, perfect for large villa and extensive grounds or quality development. [email protected]

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29SPORT

Steve Hackett

CRICKET

Misfits edge towards finalsPatong Penguins outdone by rivals as KCC continue fine form

A pivotal weekend at the ACG saw the Phuket Misfits defeat close

rivals Patong Penguins to close in on a T20 final place, while KCC march on.

In the early game last Sun-day (Feb 2), the luckless Pan-thers took on unbeaten KCC. On winning the toss, Captain Deuskar Mayur decided to bat against what looked on paper like a weakened KCC team.

After two early wickets, the ever-reliable Mayur 41 runs (off 36 balls) and Balesh 44 (37) proceeded to build towards a reasonable score and with the help latterly off newcomer Sam 20 (15) and Ravi Naik 11 (8) the Panthers posted their highest team score of the tournament, 175/7 off their 20 overs. Arif Mushtaq, with 3/44, was the pick of the KCC bowlers.

In reply, KCC lost two early wickets in the run chase, bringing together at the crease the reliable Wahid Shad 39 (29) not out and the previously

unused Waseem Mansoor 98 (53) not out.

They built the innings smoothly, going through the gears with Waseem in particu-lar striking a brutal 11 fours and 5 sixes in his superb 98 not out, and saw their team home with no further loss

and 8 balls to spare. Captain Mayur was again the pick of the bowlers with 0/21 off his 4 overs, aided by Sam 0/23, who bowled some excellent leg-spin.

The “Man of the Match” was awarded to Waseem Man-soor for his excellent knock of

Rehman won the toss and elected to bat. The innings could not have started better for the Misfits and at the drinks interval (9.5 overs), they stood at 119/1 having lost Hamilton 38 (26) to the penultimate ball before the break.

There was obviously a constructive dressing room discussion during the interval as the Penguins came out a different team, picking up the wickets of the impressive Jeremy Bootsy, 73 (39) and Manish 33 (20) in the space of 7 overs, conceding only 50-odd runs in the process and applying the brakes to what at one stage looked to be a potential score well in excess of 200.

Ultimately the Misfits re-corded an impressive total of 200/7 off their allocation of 20 overs. The usual duo of Robertson 0/33 and Buchner 2/42, aided by a cameo from Michael Flowers of 2/20, be-ing the pick of the Penguins bowlers.

Chasing a total of over 200 in 20 overs, the Penguins needed someone to stand up and score big runs. However,

98 not out.The afternoon match was

the highly anticipated meeting of the Misfits and Penguins, both looking for that crucial win in the hot Thalang sun to take either team to the verge of a Final place.

Misfits Captain Mudasir

after losing Flowers and Cap-tain Raju early, talisman Craig Morgan 81 (43) once again tried to haul the Penguins back into a game that looked to be slipping away.

A stunning catch on the boundary edge by Dan Nich-olson to dismiss Robertson brought Anthony van der Blerk 31 (28) not out to the crease to join his fellow “Saffa” Morgan, determined to bring home the points for the Penguins.

However, Captain Mudasir Rehman made a stunning caught and bowled to dismiss Morgan and extinguish any lingering hopes that the Pen-guins had of winning.

A great all-round team performance by the Misfits, proving the old cricket adage that “catches win matches” rang true, with some accom-plished fielding and bowling.

“Captain Mudi” finished with tournament best figures of 4/21, aided by the dogged Pir Sami 2/28, which saw the Misfits home by a margin of 33 runs.

The “Man of the Match” award went to Mudasir Rehm-an with 4/21 and 16 not out.

Jeremy Bootsy of the Phuket Misfits hit a crucial 73 not out as his team edged closer to a finals place. Photo: Jason Robertson


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SPORT30

Mahomes inspires Kansas City to end 50-year Super Bowl wait

AFP

NFL

Patrick Mahomes led a thrilling late come-back as the Kansas City

Chiefs ended their 50-year wait for a Super Bowl crown with a 31-20 victory over the San Francisco 49ers last Sunday (Feb 3).

Chiefs quarterback Ma-homes shrugged off an error-strewn start to the game to overturn a 20-10 fourth- quar-ter deficit in a nail-biting contest at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium.

The Super Bowl win was Kansas City’s first NFL Cham-pionship since their triumph over the Minnesota Vikings in 1970.

And it owed everything to the nerve of Mahomes, who

for the third straight game led the Chiefs back from a double-digit deficit to seal victory.

“We never lost faith. Eve-rybody on this team, no one had their head down and we found a way to win in the end,” Mahomes said.

The Chiefs quarterback had looked out of sorts through the first three quarters, throw-ing two interceptions in the face of fierce pressure from the magnificent San Francisco defence.

But with the game on the line in the fourth quarter, Mahomes led his team on two long drives to set up touchdowns for tight end Travis Kelce and running back Damien Williams.

Those scores put the Chiefs into a 24-20 lead and Kansas City made the game safe

when Williams danced up the sideline for a 38-yard rushing score with 1 minute 12 seconds remaining.

Chiefs outwit 49ers in Miami

PH U K E T FA N S O F Muay Thai were treated to an exceptional fight night of action on Friday (Jan 31) as “The Phuket Super Fight Real Muay Thai” event was hosted at Central Festival.

An electric atmosphere contributed to the high calibre line-up of fighters raising their game as some truly impressive bouts were fought out to an enthusiastic and receptive crowd.

The fight of the night saw Rodtang Jitmuangnon take home a unanimous points victory against Yo-dlekphet Or.Atchariya, with a particularly explo-sive round 3 seeing both fighters leaving no stone unturned in their quest for a knock-out.

Widely regarded as the biggest superstar in Muay Thai, Rodtang is charting a blazing a trail with this victory chalking up his tenth win a row; he last lost back in 2018, to Rungkit Mor Bestkamala.

Other highlights on the evening saw Chalam Parunchai defeat Chorfah Tor.Sangtiennoi and Seksan Or.Kwanmuang beat Tha-nonchai Somwangkaiyang.

The Phuket News

Rodtang connects with Yo-dlekphet in the fight of the night. Photo: Helen Tran

Phuket Super Fight NightMUAY THAI

EIGHTY BRITISH INTERNA-tional School, Phuket (BISP) students travelled to Bangkok recently to play in the Harrow International Football 7s.

BISP entered both boys and girls teams in the U9, U11, U13 and U15 age groups. Just like the BISP Soc-cer 7s, the tournament ran over two days from Jan 17-18.

After a successful first day of

football, seven BISP teams advanced to Saturday’s ‘Champions League.’ BISP then went on to win both the U9 girls, U15 girls and U15 boys

competitions. All the BISP sides finished within the top five of their respective divisions.

For many of the young U9 players, most of whom were Year 4, it was their first time travelling by air to an international tournament wearing BISP colours.

BISP Cruzeiro U9 Football coach, Andre Velloso, said the boys had great fun and relished the opportunity to play in another big international school football tournament.

“The boys had a great tourna-

BISP footballers show their style in Bangkok tournamentFOOTBALL

U9s girls. Photo: BISP Media

Mahomes finished with 286 passing yards and 26 completions from 42 attempts with two touchdowns. The

Chiefs quarterback also rushed for a touchdown early in the first quarter.

The defeat was desperately hard on the 49ers, who were chasing a record-equalling sixth Vince Lombardi Trophy and who had barely put a foot wrong through three quarters, with their defence shackling Mahomes superbly and their offence moving the ball con-fidently to put them in the driving seat late in the game.

But as the pressure in the fourth quarter mounted, 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garop-polo’s sure touch deserted him and the Niners offence dried up.

The fourth quarter collapse was also 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan’s worst nightmare.

Shanahan had been the offensive co-ordinator for the Atlanta Falcons at the

2017 Super Bowl when they let a 28-3 lead slip in a stun-ning loss to the New England Patriots.

The game drew an au-dience of over 102 million across various TV networks and prompted US President Donald Trump to erroneously place the Chiefs in the wrong state in his congratulatory message via Twitter, drawing scorn and mockery.

“Congratulations to the Kansas City Chiefs on a great game, and a fantastic come-back, under immense pres-sure,” he tweeted.

“You represented the Great State of Kansas and, in fact, the entire USA, so very well. Our Country is PROUD OF YOU!”.

He later deleted the tweet, and replaced it with one nam-ing the correct state.

ment and I was very proud of how they played and worked as a team against some strong competition. Our defensive line was really good. Everyone had a positive experience,” he said.

Teacher Simone Giani, coach of the victorious U9 girls, said the team played the best football she had ever seen them play.

“The girls showed fantastic teamwork, accurate striking and strong defence.

“Over two days they scored a

massive 22 goals and didn’t concede a single goal. The respect, kindness and resilience demonstrated by all the players made me a very proud coach.”

BISP Athletics Director, Jeff LaMantia, said the large group of students showed a high standard of behaviour both on and off the pitch.

“The students wore the Sea Eagle with pride and were a credit to our school and the BISP football programme,” he said.

Lee Blake, BISP

Patrick Mahomes celebrates the Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory on Feb 3. Photo: AFP


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31SPORT

Ben Tirebuck [email protected]

FOOTBALL

Blades of gloryLet’s face it, Liverpool

have won the league. Jurgen Klopp may

still be erring cautiously but we all know Liverpool’s much-coveted first Premier League is all but a formality.

Klopp is a phenomenal manager overseeing a phe-nomenal team who is almost certain to win the manager of the season award.

However, just a few places below in the table sit a team managed by a much less her-alded candidate who surely must also be in the running for the accolade, given the incredible work he is doing.

Chris Wilder has taken Sheffield United on a head-spinning tour de force over the past few years courtesy of successive promotions from the English third tier to the hallowed grounds of the Premier League.

Many predicted they would struggle and just make up the numbers, the perennial whip-ping boys of the top division, unfashionable and playing a dour brand of football.

The reality is Sheffield United currently sit sixth in the table with a defensive record only bettered by Liverpool, playing fantastic football. They are ahead of Manchester United, Arsenal and Everton and hot on the heels of Spurs and Chelsea. They are very much this season’s Premier League disruptors.

Largely consisting of play-ers from the lower leagues, they do not possess household names, multi-million-pound signings on exorbitant wages or players with big egos sport-ing fancy haircuts and driving flashy cars: they are a no non-sense, hard-working, honest bunch that apply themselves to their job with absolute convic-

tion. In essence, a team very much moulded in the image of their manager.

‘People have to graft’Sheffield is known as the “steel city,” a quality that is clearly evident in Wilder. He was born and bred in the city, a die-hard United fan from an early age. He was a ball boy at the stadium in his youth and represented the club as a player between 1986-1992. Such is his devotion, he has a tattoo of the team’s crest.

Many youngsters dream of playing for the team they grow up supporting. Few do and fewer still go on to man-age that team. Chris Wilder has done both. And done the latter spectacularly well.

He started his management journey by running a local pub team in the amateur leagues, progressing to successful stints with Alfreton Town, Oxford United and Northampton.

He joined his boyhood club in 2016 and hasn’t looked back since, leading them to promotion from League One with a club record 100-point haul, then securing promotion to the top flight last season.

Wilder, 52, keeps things real and his players feet firmly on the ground. He is a strict timekeeper and a big advocate of hard work fostering team

spirit. “People have to graft,” he has been quoted as saying. “I don’t ask. They have to.”

“The manager is never less than honest,” right wing back George Baldock told The Guardian. “If he’s happy he tells you; if he’s not he lets you know. If we get ahead of ourselves he’ll come down on us like a ton of bricks. He keeps us so grounded and I think that honesty, desire and fight can be seen in our performances.”

Wilder does not suffer fools gladly and isn’t afraid to dig out a player publicly after a poor performance, something witnessed when he lambasted goalkeeper Dean Henderson for a recent error. Critics were aghast but Henderson has gone on to be arguably the League’s best ’keeper, with utterances of an England call-up on the cards.

Upsetting the apple cartTactically, Wilder has proven himself more than astute. He may be perceived old-school in many ways but there are few as innovative as him when it comes to tactics, devising and employing a complicated but hugely effective and entertain-ing system involving overlap-ping centre-halves which has received high praise from the likes of Pep Guardiola, Marcelo Bielsa and Klopp himself.

English Premier League 2019 - 2020

Table correct as of Friday (Feb 7)

Team MP W D L F A GD Pts

1 Liverpool 25 24 1 0 60 15 +45 73

2 Manchester City 25 16 3 6 65 29 +36 51

3 Leicester City 25 15 4 6 54 26 +28 49

4 Chelsea 25 12 5 8 43 34 +9 41

5 Tottenham Hotspur 25 10 7 8 40 32 +8 37

6 Sheffield United 25 9 9 7 26 23 +3 36

7 Manchester United 25 9 8 8 36 29 +7 35

8 Wolverhampton 25 8 11 6 35 32 +3 35

9 Everton 25 9 6 10 31 37 -6 33

10 Arsenal 25 6 13 6 32 34 -2 31

11 Burnley 25 9 4 12 28 38 -10 31

12 Newcastle United 25 8 7 10 24 36 -12 31

13 Southampton 25 9 4 12 31 46 -15 31

14 Crystal Palace 25 7 9 9 22 29 -7 30

15 Brighton 25 6 8 11 30 37 -7 26

16 Bournemouth 25 7 5 13 25 38 -13 26

17 Aston Villa 25 7 4 14 32 47 -15 25

18 West Ham United 25 6 6 13 30 43 -13 24

19 Watford 25 5 8 12 23 39 -16 23

20 Norwich City 25 4 6 15 24 47 -23 18

Chris Wilder is certainly making himself heard as his team continue to shock and delight in equal measure. Photo: AFP

Live Sports TV Schedule*Times may be subject to change

SPORT START STOP EVENT TEAMS / INFO

Friday 7th Feb

Cricket 18:00 00:00 ODI2 - Durban South Africa v. England

Rugby Union 13:05 15:15 Super Rugby Highlanders v. Sharks

15:15 17:15 Super Rugby Brumbies v. Rebels

Saturday 8th Feb

Cricket 09:00 16:00 ODI2 - Auckland New Zealand v. India

Rugby Union 21:15 23:15 6 Nations, Dublin Ireland v. Wales

23:45 01:45 6 Nations, Edinburgh Scotland v. England

Rugby Union 13:05 15:15 Super Rugby Chiefs v. Crusaders

15:15 17:15 Super Rugby Waratahs v. Blues

Soccer 19:30 21:30 EPL Everton v. Crystal Palace

00:30 02:30 EPL Brighton v. Watford

Sunday 9th Feb

Rugby Union 22:00 00:00 6 Nations, Paris France v. Italy

Soccer 21:00 23:00 EPL Sheffield Utd v. Bournemouth

Soccer 23:30 01:30 EPL Man City v. West Ham

Cricket 15:00 22:00 ODI3 - Johannesburg South Africa v. England

If he were from Brazil, Spain, Italy or Germany critics would be waxing lyrical over his innovation and bravery in the game, his ability to coach players to perform beyond their peak. But he’s from Sheffield and that doesn’t quite fit the profile of what a “top manager” is for many.

Critics frequently con-demn this snobbery at top clubs where managers from overseas are often preferred to homegrown achievers. What proven success in a management capacity, for example, has Ole Gunnar Solksjaer to merit his appoint-ment at Manchester United? It is tempting to imagine what Wilder could achieve at Old Trafford given the resources and financial clout that would be at his disposal.

However, Wilder is more than happy where he is, re-cently signing a new four-and-a-half-year deal.

“I think we can win a few games and upset the apple cart,” commented Wilder at the start of the season. “Hope-fully this is just the start of something special.”

Something very special indeed so far, Mr Wilder.

Sheff ield United host Bournemouth on Sunday (Feb 9), kick-off 9pm Thailand time.


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Explosive Muay Thai fight night in Phuket > p30

AFLAlan Sutherland

Given the number of Austral-ians based in Phuket, and the legendary post-season

football trips that have graced the island over the years, it is surpris-ing that an AFL team has never been established domestically.

However, the island now has a team and the “Phuket Power” are only weeks away from pitting themselves against AFL Masters teams from across Asia.

The Alan Cooke Ground (ACG) will welcome nine competing teams from Malaysia, Indonesia, Phuket, Hong Kong, Singapore,

Macau, Thailand (Bangkok), Vi-etnam and Cambodia to contest the AFL Masters on March 7.

Twelve players per side will be on the field at a time and the games will be played over 2 x 12-minute halves. The fixtures have yet to be released but it is expected that each team will play three games on the day with the possibility of a final for the higher ranking teams.

The current “Phuket Power” squad is comprised of 12 Aus-tralians, three Thais, three South Africans, three Irishmen, a Kiwi, a Canadian, an American and an Englishman. It’s a great mix of lo-cal businessmen, school teachers, a pilot, some offshore workers and even a Muay Thai coach.

Four of the players strapped on the boots for Thailand and Vietnam in last year’s event. More than half of the squad will play their first game of AFL next month at the tournament.

A big part of the appeal for AFL players and fans is that it is a contact sport like rugby and American Football (without the protection). In addition to running, kicking, catching and passing the ball, players can defend by tackling the player with the ball or bumping and blocking their opponents.

Players should be 35 years and above to qualify for the Masters. In the upcoming event, each team can include a couple of younger play-

ers in the hope of exposing some indigenous players to the game. “Phuket Power”, for example, has three Thai players that are hoping to be involved on the day.

The intensity and skill level of AFL Masters is suitable for many first-time AFL players. The rules of the game aren’t considered too difficult to grasp. AFL holds similarities to many sports such as Gaelic football, soccer, hockey and lacrosse where the teams pass the ball forward and into or through a goal to score.

The “Phuket Power” welcomes any support and new sponsors in the leadup to the event. So far, Legends bar in Patong has assisted to purchase playing tops and the

Minor group have helped out with playing shorts from the Brisbane Lions AFL side.

We hope to see plenty of local support on March 7. We aren’t actively looking to add to our matchday list but we welcome anyone interested to join us on Wednesday and Sunday afternoons from 5pm at the ACG for training. If additional players are available, it’s likely that they’ll get a game on the day.

For further details please con-tact: Andrew McMillan, Phuket Power AFL. Tel: +66 854720931 or Alan Sutherland, Thailand Tigers AFL. Tel: +66 898979435 email: [email protected]

PHUKET HAS BEEN CON-firmed as one of the five pilot venues to host the Amazing Thailand Mara-thon, Thailand’s biggest and most popular road race.

In line with the govern-ment’s direction, the Tour-ism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is currently develop-ing the Amazing Thailand Marathon as an annual se-ries starting with five pilot provinces including Bang-kok, Buri Ram, Chon Buri, Phuket and Ratchaburi with an annual target of 100,000 participants including up to

15,000 foreigners.Dates and specific de-

tails, however, have not yet

been shared in regards to the Phuket edition.

The Amazing Thailand

Marathon, hosted in Bang-kok for the past two years, attracts about 30,000 run-

Phuket confirmed as future venue for Amazing Thailand Marathonners and over 75,000 spec-tators across the whole weekend, establishing it as the country’s leading running event on the an-nual sporting calendar.

On Sunday (Feb 2), Bangkok hosted the third annual edition of the mar-athon at the Rajamangala Stadium, Hua Mak, Bang-kok with a total of 29,883 runners participating.

There were 5,565 run-ners in the full mara-thon at 42.195 kilometres; 11,051 runners in the half marathon at 21.10 kilo-metres; 10,677 runners in the mini marathon at 10 kilometres, and 2,590

MARATHON runners in the fun run at 5 kilometres.

The participants ran past Bangkok’s iconic landmarks such as the Victory Monument, Wat Benchamabophit (Mar-ble Temple), Ratchadam-noen Avenue (Thailand’s Champs-Elysees), Rama VIII Bridge, and Wat Saket (Golden Mount).

Phiphat Ratchakit-prakarn, the Minister of Tourism and Sports, inaugurated the event and Toyota was the race’s presenting sponsor.

Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT)

AFL in Phuket. Photo: Thailand Tigers Australian Rules Football Club Facebook page

Participants at the start line of the Amazing Thailand Marathon Bangkok 2020 on Feb 2. Photo: TAT

Teams from across Asia to compete at Phuket AFL Masters next month

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